Statues - Hither & Thither

 

Description

The Old Schools building was originally the Old Court of King's College. The university had purchased it from the college in 1829 to use as its administrative centre and it became known as the Old Schools. The court was started by Henry VI in 1441 but left incomplete after the King was deposed in 1461. Between 1864 and 1867, George Gilbert Scott rebuilt the south range and a portion of the west range incorporating the fifteenth century gatehouse, work completed by John L. Pearson in 1890. These buildings were used as university library until 1934.

The 13 statues depicts persons from the history of the library, mainly benefactors.

A. Façade facing Trinity Lane:

Nine statues on three levels at the gate tower

1.

2. Richard Holdsworth

3. Henry Lucas

Top level
1. ..
2. holdsworth - Richard Holdsworth (Newcastle-on-Tyne 1590 - 1649), English academic theologian, and Master of Emmanuel College, Cambridge from 1637 to 1643; bequeathed in 1649 his books to the library (Wikipedia).
3. lucas - Henry Lucas (c. 1610 - London 1663), English clergyman and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1640 to 1648; bequeathed in 1664 4,000 volumes to the library (Wikipedia).

   4. Matthew Parker

   5. Andrew Perne

   6. Cuthbert Tunstall

   Middle level
4. parker - Matthew Parker (Norwich 1504 - Lambeth 1575), Archbishop of Canterbury, 1559-1757; left a collection of manuscripts, largely collected from former monastic libraries, to Corpus Christi college at Cambridge, some volumes now in the Cambridge University Library. (Wikipedia).
5. perne - Andrew Perne (c. 1519 - 1589), Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University and dean of Ely, restored the library after the troubles during the Reformation. (Wikipedia).
6. tunstall - Bishop Cuthbert Tunstall (Hackforth, Yorkshire 1474 - 1559), Prince-Bishop of Durham; benefactor of the library, who gave the Library its first Greek text (Wikipedia).

   7.

   8. Henry VI

   9. Thomas Rotherham

   Lower level
7. thorpe - Not clear who is meant.
8. henry vi - Henry VI (Windsor Castle 1421 - Tower of London 1471), king of England 1422-1461 and 1540-71 (Wikipedia).
9. rotherham - Thomas Rotherham (Rotherham, Yorkshire 1423 - Cawood Castle 1500), Chancellor of the University, Bishop of Lincoln (1472-80) and Archbishop of York (1480- 1500), constructed the eastern front of the Old Schools (Wikipedia).

B. Façade facing the court (closed for visitors):

10. Tobias Rustat

11. William Worts

12. George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham

13. E. G. Hancock

Three statues at the gate tower:
10. rvstat - Tobias Rustat (1606?-1694) was a servant to Charles II and benefactor of the University of Cambridge. He is best remembered for creating the first fund for the purchase of books at the Cambridge University Library (Wikipedia).
11. worts - William Worts, by his will (1709) the Library was to receive the residue of his estate.
12. buckingham - George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham (Brooksby, Leicestershire, 1592 - Portsmouth 1628), chancellor of the University of Cambridge, planned to built a new library. (Wikipedia).
    One statue at the north wing:
13. hancock - E. G. Hancock, through his bequest the completion of the western quadrangle was achieved.

Annotation

Sculptor

• Unknown artist. Do you know who the sculptor is? please let us know.

Sources & Information

• A History of the County of Cambridge and the Isle of Ely: Volume 3, the City and University of Cambridge (1959), chapter: The University of Cambridge: The Schools and University Library, British History Online.

Tags

Locatie (N 52°12'18" - E 0°6'57") (Satellite view: Google Maps)

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