Plaque: The Arts Club - left - WW2
War Memorial
Erection date: 3/5/1957
{Stone under the left-most ground floor window:}
This stone commemorating the rebuilding of the Arts Club after its partial destruction by enemy action in September 1940 was laid on 3rd May 1957 by Martin A. Buckmaster, its oldest member.
ΑΓΗΡΑΟΣ ΗΜΑΤΑ ΠΑΝΤΑ
Our Greek consultant, David Hopkins, transcribed the Greek quotation and writes: “This phrase appears several times in the Odyssey. The most likely context here would be lines 90-94 of Book 7 where Odysseus visits the magnificent palace of King Alcinous. At the entrance there are gold and silver statues of guard dogs, which Homer describes as ‘ageless all their days’. Perhaps a more up-to-date translation of the phrase would be ‘Built to last’!”
The assumption is that the quotation refers to the building. David is perhaps too polite to mention that immediately preceding the quotation is a reference to Martin Buckmaster, the Club's "oldest member". Only saying.
Site: The Arts Club (2 memorials)
W1, Dover Street, 40
