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A semi-reclining figure of the river god with symbolic objects. He holds a shovel which represents the work of the navvies (navigators) and at his feet are bales and a barrel to symbolise the river's contribution to commerce. The work was originally made for the fountain basins of the Crystal Palace at Sydenham in 1854. The sculpture was commissioned in 1854 for the fountains in the gardens of the Crystal Palace, Sydenham. In 1958 it was moved to the head of the River Thames in Trewsbury Meads. After being vandalised the statue was moved again in 1974 to its present site next to St John's Lock.

Title

Father Thames

Date

1854

Medium

cement

Accession number

GL7_JC_S112

Acquisition method

commissioned for the grounds of the Crystal Palace

Work type

Statue

Owner

The Environment Agency

Custodian

The Environment Agency

Work status

extant

Listing status

Grade II (England and Wales)

Listing date

23/11/90

Access

at all times

Signature/marks description

signed on base: R MONTI

Inscription description

plaque to the side of the statue: FATHER THAMES / Presented in 1958 by H. Scott Freeman Esq., / a Conservator of the River Thames / The statue was commissioned in 1854 / for the Crystal Palace and marked the Head of / the Thames at Trewsbury Mead from 1958 to 1974 / It was moved to St. John's Lock in 1974

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