Bust

02 Croydon - Isaac Newton

Site: Whitgift and others (17 memorials)

CR9, Katharine Street, Croydon Public Library

Built in 1892 by Charles Henman Jr. this heavily decorated complex of buildings makes up Croydon's Town Hall. The building and the roundels are covered at Ornamental Passions. Each of the five bays of the frieze carries three portrait roundels. The names, wreathed in either oak or laurel leaves, are given along the tops of the windows just below the pediments, listed here left to right. Ornamental Passions assumes they are all the work of Edwin Roscoe Mullins who did other work on this part of the building.

You would have thought that by 1892 the spelling of Shakespeare would have been sorted out. But this is not the first time we have seen it as "Shakespere" on buildings around this date. Perhaps it was a nod to the fashion for historical romanticism. Of course, in the 16th century, spelling had not settled down, to the extent that Shakespeare himself was inconsistent. His marriage certificate (necessary because at 18 he was under-age) has his name spelt as Shagspeare, accidentally, we are sure.

Archbishop Tillotson takes pride of place at the centre of these portraits. He was born almost 30 years after Whitgift's death and, like Whitgift, became Archbishop of Canterbury. Other than that we can find no reason for his honoured presence here.

Improbably, "Croydon" derives from the Anglo Saxon for "Crocus Valley" (ref: The Londonist)

Comments are provided by Facebook, please ensure you are signed in here to see them

This section lists the subjects commemorated on the memorial on this page:
02 Croydon - Isaac Newton

Subjects commemorated i

Sir Isaac Newton

Born in Woolsthorpe, Lincolnshire, on Christmas day, according to the calenda...

Read More

This section lists the subjects who helped to create/erect the memorial on this page:
02 Croydon - Isaac Newton

Created by i

This section lists the other memorials at the same location as the memorial on this page:
02 Croydon - Isaac Newton

Also at this site i

Nearby Memorials

Colonial Office - B10 - Edward the Confessor

Colonial Office - B10 - Edward the Confessor

SW1, Whitehall, Foreign Office

Statues Hither and Thither has been invaluable in identifying some of the busts and most of the statues. The statues are not labelled and...

1 subject commemorated, 2 creators
Wall of the Ancestors - rightmost

Wall of the Ancestors - rightmost

SE8, George Beard Road, Aragon Tower, north-east (riverside) wall of

According to the plaque these are, clockwise from top left: Debra Lee, Phineas Pett, Tsar Peter the Great, Dr Burnhart Gloss, Catherine o...

8 subjects commemorated, 1 creator
J. M. W. Turner - W1

J. M. W. Turner - W1

W1, Queen Anne Street, 23

This plaque is so well integrated into the façade we believe it was part of the design.

1 subject commemorated, 1 creator
Bermondsey Library - 5 - unknown

Bermondsey Library - 5 - unknown

SE16, Spa Road, Old Bermondsey Library / Kagyu Samye Dzong Buddhist centre

The weather has removed all the hair and costume details which are essential for any chance of identifying the person represented. Chauc...

Morley mosaics - KEW - Heather Rabbatts

Morley mosaics - KEW - Heather Rabbatts

SE1, King Edward Walk, Morley College

These 10 portrait mosaics are the result of a project by Morley College to celebrate the achievements of significant women who have lived...

1 subject commemorated, 3 creators