Relief

Sun Fire Office

Site: Cornhill pump (5 memorials)

EC3, Cornhill

Around the top are some delightful reliefs in iron of the badges of early fire insurance companies: Sun, Phoenix, London and Royal Exchange. These are all crudely coloured with red, gold, blue.  See 'Also at this site'.

This water pump, designed by architect Nathaniel Wright, is Grade II listed, where it is described “Obelisk of cast iron with canted corners, slight decoration and long inscriptions. Granite trough probably of later date.” As you can see from our photos the pump is (2011) in a dreadful state of repair. Let's hope someone notices soon and perhaps the modern day equivalents of its original erectors will fund its restoration.

2015: prompted by Jon Pettigrew on Facebook we must report that the pump was indeed restored not long after we photographed it.  (Keeping London Remembers up-to-date could become a full-time job.)  But the splendid A London Inheritance has photographed it for us, and provided some earlier photos and history.

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:
Sun Fire Office

Subjects commemorated i

Sun Fire Office

Founded in London, now the oldest existing insurance company in the world.

Read More

This section lists the other memorials at the same location as the memorial on this page:
Sun Fire Office

Also at this site i

Cornhill pump

Cornhill pump

We understand "the neighbouring fire officers" to mean the four fire assuranc...

Read More

Nearby Memorials

CI - 8 - Books

CI - 8 - Books

EC3, Cornhill, 32

This carving depicts the two Brontë sisters meeting Thackeray, but rather fails to successfully render his specs. Charlotte did indeed ...

7 subjects commemorated, 2 creators
Covent Garden Market

Covent Garden Market

WC2, Southampton Street, Jubilee Market Hall

Large bronze relief "Fruit Porter Bronze", unveiled October 2006 by Mayor of Westminster. Commissioned by Worshipful Company of Fruiterer...

28 subjects commemorated, 2 creators
Temple Bar memorial - Prince of Wales's typhoid recovery

Temple Bar memorial - Prince of Wales's typhoid recovery

EC4, Fleet Street

This is the site of the 17th century Temple Bar entrance to the City of London. Having become an obstruction to circulation it was remove...

4 subjects commemorated, 1 creator
Animals War Memorial Dispensary - bronze frieze

Animals War Memorial Dispensary - bronze frieze

NW6, Cambridge Avenue, 10

This bronze frieze shows a winged Victory holding wreaths and flanked by camels, mules, bullocks, horses, elephants, dogs and pigeons, al...

1 subject commemorated, 2 creators
Hungarian uprising

Hungarian uprising

SW7, Exhibition Road, 55

In memory of the victims of the Hungarian uprising of 1956.

1 subject commemorated