This article lists public artworks which used to exist in London, but which have either been destroyed or removed to another place. Works which have been moved within London are not included, nor are temporary installations such as those on the Fourth plinth at Trafalgar Square. However, where one statue has been removed and replaced by another similar one, the former is included in this list.
Works removed or lost
edit| Image | Title / subject | Location and coordinates | Date | Artist / designer | Architect / other | Type | Designation | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 More images | The Charing Cross Eleanor of Castile | Charing Cross | 1291– c. 1294 | Alexander Abingdon | Richard of Crundale and Roger of Crundale | Commemorative cross | — | The costliest and most elaborate of the Eleanor crosses marking the sites where the Queen’s funeral cortège rested on the way to her burial at Westminster Abbey. The master mason Richard of Crundale died in 1293, after which the work was taken up by his brother Roger. The cross was destroyed under the orders of Parliament in 1647.[1] |
_1.313_-_Cheapside_Cross,_as_it_appeared_in_1547.jpg) More images | The Cheapside Cross Eleanor of Castile | Cheapside | 1291–1293 | ? | Michael of Canterbury | Commemorative cross | — | Rebuilt in 1441, defaced in 1581 and 1600, and finally destroyed on 2 May 1643.[2] |
_NPG_D18531_(cropped).jpg) More images | Statue of Charles II trampling Cromwell | Stocks Market | 17th century | ? | ? | Equestrian statue | Grade II | The figure on horseback originally represented the Polish king John Sobieski and the lower figure a defeated Turk. The sculpture was bought in 1675 by Sir Robert Vyner, who had the rider's head remodelled to portray Charles II. In 1739 it was removed for the construction of the Mansion House; since 1883 it has stood outside Newby Hall, Yorkshire.[3] |
.jpg) | Statue of George I | Leicester Square | c. 1722 | John Nost the Elder | — | Equestrian statue | — | A gilded lead replica of Nost's bronze equestrian statue, erected in Dublin in 1722 and now outside the Barber Institute, Birmingham. The horse was cast from Hubert Le Sueur's Charles I at Charing Cross. Purchased at the Cannons sale of 1747 and installed in the Square the following year. From the 1780s the statue was neglected and frequently vandalised; by the late nineteenth century only the horse remained, which was sold for £16.[4] |
| Statue of George I | Grosvenor Square | c. 1722 | John Nost the Elder | — | Equestrian statue | — | Also of lead, this was probably from the same model as the Leicester Square statue. Bought from Nost's workshop by Sir Richard Grosvenor in 1725.[5] | |
.jpg) | Statue of Prince William, Duke of Cumberland | Cavendish Square | 1770 | Sir Henry Cheere, 1st Baronet | — | Equestrian statue | — | Cheere produced a bronzed lead statuette of the Duke of Cumberland (now in the National Army Museum) in around 1745. In 1770 a full-scale statue differing slightly from this model was erected in Cavendish Square; it was removed in 1868 and melted down.[6] In the summer of 2012 a replica made of soap by the Korean artist Meekyoung Shin was installed on the plinth (still in situ) and allowed to erode over the course of a year.[7] The display was later extended by a further six months to the end of 2013 and other versions were installed in the grounds of the South Korean National Museum of Contemporary Art[8] and at MoCA Taipei.[9] |
,_Piccadil_Wellcome_V0013864_(cropped).jpg) | Isis and Osiris | Façade of the Egyptian Hall, Piccadilly; later on the Bastion High Walk, London Wall, outside the Museum of London | 1811 | Lawrence Gahagan | William Bullock (original setting) | Statues | — | The Egyptian Hall was demolished in 1905. The figures were installed outside the Museum of London in 1994,[10] but are in storage as of 2023.[11][12] |
 More images | Statue of Robert Milligan | Museum of London Docklands, Hertsmere Road | 1813 | Richard Westmacott | — | Statue | — | Originally placed within the Hibbert Gate, immediately south of the entrance of the West India Docks office. Moved in 1875 to the top of the central gate pier at the West India Dock Road entrance, which was dismantled in 1943. Restored to its original position in 1997.[13] Removed in 2020 in response to Black Lives Matter protests.[14] |
 | The King's Cross George IV | Kings Cross 51°31′51″N 0°07′17″W / 51.5307°N 0.1215°W | 1836 | ? | Stephen Geary | Memorial with sculptures | — | Intended as a national memorial to George IV, this structure gave its name to the district of Kings Cross. It was much criticised and was demolished in 1845.[15] |
| Figurehead from HMS Britomart | Above door of 3 Station Approach, near Kew Gardens station | 1840s | unknown | — | Architectural sculpture | — | The figurehead was installed above the shop in 1960 by its owner, Ian Sheridan, a descendant of the playwright Richard Brinsley Sheridan. He had salvaged it from the wreckage of the ship after it was destroyed by fire in the 1930s. In the 2000s, after the shop changed hands, the figurehead was removed.[16] | |
.jpg) More images | Statue of Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington | Wellington Arch, Hyde Park Corner | 1840–1846 | Matthew Cotes Wyatt | Decimus Burton | Equestrian statue | Grade II | Wyatt’s statue was installed on the Wellington Arch on 30 September 1846. It was regarded as a failure on aesthetic grounds and its gigantic size—30 ft high and 26 ft wide—was felt to be excessive for the commemoration of a single individual. It was removed to the military town of Aldershot, Hampshire, when the arch’s orientation was changed in 1883.[17] |
_1.528_-_St_Mary_Woolnoth.jpg) More images | Obelisk | Outside St Mary Woolnoth | Mid-19th century | ? | — | Obelisk | Grade II | Brought to Swanage, Dorset, by George Burt, and re-erected at Ballard Down overlooking that town in 1892.[18] |
 | Statue of James McGrigor | Atterbury Street, Millbank (1909–2003) | 1865 | Matthew Noble | — | Statue | Grade II | Unveiled 18 November 1865 at the Royal Hospital, Chelsea. Moved in 1909 to the newly built Royal Army Medical College, which became the Chelsea College of Arts in 2003. The statue was then relocated to the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst.[19] |
.jpg) | Bust of William Hogarth | Leicester Square | 1874 | Joseph Durham | James Knowles | Bust | Grade II | One of four busts of historical residents of the area, installed as part of Knowles’s redesign of the gardens, which were removed in 2010–12. This bust originally stood in the south-eastern corner of the square, near where Hogarth had a house from 1733 until his death in 1764,[20] but moved to the north-east in the 1989–92 refurbishment of the square.[21] |
.jpg) | Bust of John Hunter | Leicester Square | 1874 | Thomas Woolner | James Knowles | Bust | Grade II | Hunter lived at 28 Leicester Square from 1783 to 1793.[22] Albert Grant, the owner of Leicester Square in 1874, originally commissioned Woolner to sculpt a bust of Samuel Johnson, who frequented Reynolds’s house on the square (q.v.). Grant was, however, persuaded by the Royal College of Surgeons to honour Hunter instead. The bust originally stood in the north-eastern corner of the square but changed places with the bust of Hogarth in the south-east when the square was refurbished in 1989–92.[21] |
 | Bust of Isaac Newton | Leicester Square | 1874 | William Calder Marshall | James Knowles | Bust | Grade II | Newton lived nearby, on 35 St Martin's Street, from 1710 to 1725.[23] The bust was formerly in the south-western corner of the gardens.[21] |
 | Bust of Joshua Reynolds | Leicester Square | 1874 | Henry Weekes | James Knowles | Bust | Grade II | Formerly stood in the north-western corner of the gardens, a site close to 47 Leicester Square,[24] where Reynolds lived from 1760 until his death in 1792.[25] |
_(14595963669).jpg) | Poets' Fountain Geoffrey Chaucer, William Shakespeare and John Milton | Hamilton Place | 1875 | Thomas Thornycroft | — | Fountain with sculptures | — | Inaugurated 9 July 1875. A multi-figure composition including figures of the Muses and statues of the three poets crowned with a personification of Fame; all but the last of these have been lost since the fountain was dismantled in 1948, having sustained bomb damage in World War II.[26] |
 | Afghan and Zulu War Memorial | Repository Road, Woolwich 51°28′57″N 0°03′16″E / 51.4824°N 0.0545°E | 1881/3? | Count Gleichen | — | Megalithoid with sculpture | Grade II | Moved to Larkhill Garrison, Wiltshire, at some point after October 2008.[27][28] |
.jpg) | Statue of Napoléon, Prince Imperial | Royal Military Academy, Woolwich | 1883 | Count Gleichen | — | Statue | Grade II | Unveiled 13 January 1883; now at the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst.[29] |
| Memorial to Henry Fawcett | Vauxhall Park | 1893 | George Tinworth | — | Sculptural group | — | Unveiled 7 June 1893. The terracotta sculpture, situated close by Fawcett's home, was a gift from the pottery manufacturer Henry Doulton. Removed and destroyed in 1955.[30] | |
.jpg) | Statue of Hugh Rose, 1st Baron Strathnairn | Intersection of Knightsbridge and Brompton Road | 1895 | Edward Onslow Ford | — | Equestrian statue | — | Unveiled 19 June 1895 by the Duke of Grafton. Cast from guns taken during the Indian Mutiny, of which Strathnairn was one of the main suppressors. Taken down in 1931 during work on a new subway for Knightsbridge tube station and kept in storage until it was sold by Westminster Council in 1964, it now stands in Liphook, Hampshire.[31] |
| Statue of Queen Victoria | Doulton (from 1901, Royal Doulton) pottery works, Albert Embankment | 1900 | John Broad | — | Statue | — | The terracotta statue stood at this site until 1910, when it was removed for roadworks and destroyed. Other statues from the same mould went to Newbury and Gravesend.[32] | |
 | Statue of Queen Victoria | Royal Military Academy, Woolwich | 1904 | Henry Price | — | Statue | Grade II | Moved to the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, in 1947.[33] |
 More images | Pearl Assurance War Memorial | Pearl Assurance head offices, 247–252 High Holborn | 1919 | George Frampton | — | War memorial | Grade II* | Unveiled 4 July 1921. A standing figure of Saint George, similar to Frampton's design for Maidstone War Memorial. Moved to the Pearl Centre, the company's new headquarters in Peterborough, in 1991.[34] |
 | Bust of Haile Selassie | Cannizaro Park, Wimbledon | 1936 | Hilda Seligman | — | Bust | — | Destroyed by protesters on 30 June 2020. Despite occurring in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd, the vandalism was linked to unrest in Ethiopia and persecution of the Oromo people.[35] |
| La Belle Sauvage Pocahontas | Red Lion Square | 1956 | David McFall | — | Statue | — | A recumbent nude statue of Pocahontas. Commissioned by the publisher Cassell and based on that firm's colophon, which referred to its originally having been based near Ludgate Hill where Pocantontas had once lived.[36] (See the article Bell Savage Inn.) This was later removed to Greycoat Place, Victoria, and then to Villiers House, Strand. It is thought to have been sold at auction in 1996.[37] | |
| Girls Playing Netball | Barnsbury (Girls) Secondary School, Islington | 1958 | Trevor Tennant | — | Sculptural group | — | Missing since 1999, when the part of the school where the sculpture was located was sold off.[38] | |
| Meridian | State House, High Holborn | 1958–1960 | Barbara Hepworth | — | Sculpture | — | The work was commissioned for the site. In 1990 State House was demolished and Meridian was bought for the Donald M. Kendall Sculpture Gardens at the international headquarters of PepsiCo in Purchase, New York[39] | |
| Cock | Crown Woods School, Eltham | 1959 | Bernard Meadows | — | Sculpture | — | Sold at auction in 2004.[38] | |
| The Watchers | University of Roehampton | 1960 | Lynn Chadwick | — | Sculptural group | Grade II | In 2006 one of the three figures was stolen.[38] | |
| Faun with Goose | Sarel House, Tower Hamlets | 1960 | Georg Ehrlich | — | Sculpture | — | The sculptor's first commission from the London County Council, this work went missing during redevelopment of the site in the early 2000s.[38] | |
| Birdman | Sedgehill School, Lewisham | 1960 | Elisabeth Frink | — | Statue | — | [38] | |
| Birds in Flight | Elm Court School, Tulse Hill | 1960 | Heinz Henghes | — | Sculpture | — | The sculpture, designed to be suitable for children to handle, was stolen from the school shortly after it was unveiled.[38] | |
| Drinking Calf | Garratt Green School, Wandsworth | 1961 | Georg Ehrlich | — | Sculpture | — | [38] | |
| The Swans | Ashburton Estate, Wandsworth | 1961 | Gertrude Hermes | — | Sculptural group | — | Stolen in the 1980s.[38] | |
| Mother and Child | Sydenham Hill Estate | 1961 | Karin Jonzen | — | Statue | — | A commission by the London County Council, situated outside the estate's community centre, where a mother and baby clinic was held. In 1970 the work was reported stolen.[38] | |
| Neighbourly Encounter | Silverwood Estate, Southwark | 1961 | Uli Nimptsch | — | Sculpture | — | First exhibited at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition, the work disappeared soon after its installation on the estate.[38] | |
 More images | Stag | Stag Place, now Cardinal Place, Victoria | 1963 | Edward Bainbridge Copnall | Howard, Fairbairn & Partners | Sculpture | — | A late addition to the complex, the sculpture was intended to recall the Stag Brewery which had stood on the site. Removed in 1997 to the Kent Millennium River Walk, Maidstone.[40] |
 More images | Fountains | Centre Point | 1963 | Jupp Dernbach-Mayen | Richard Seifert and Partners | Fountains | Grade II | Inspired by fountains the sculptor had seen at the Alhambra in Granada. Removed in 2009 when the plaza in front of Centre Point was pedestrianised as part of construction work for Crossrail. The fountains were given to the Architectural Association for installation at Hooke Park, the AA's school for rural architecture in Dorset.[41] |
| A Boy on a Dolphin | Roupell Court Old People's Home, Lambeth | 1963 | Uli Nimptsch | — | Bas-relief | — | [38] | |
| Relief sculpture | Northern Polytechnic Institute (now London Metropolitan University), Holloway Road, Islington | 1964 | William Mitchell | Relief sculpture | — | Demolished in 2004. London Metropolitan University's Graduate School, designed by Daniel Libeskind, now stands on the site.[38] | ||
| Sun terrace | Hampstead Civic Centre | 1964 | William Mitchell | Basil Spence | Sculpted concrete sun terrace | — | Demolished in 2002.[38] | |
| Bolted Flat | Lollard School, Southwark | 1966 | John Hoskin | Sculpture | — | Dismantled in the late 1980s or early 1990s.[38] | ||
_by_Barbara_Hepworth_in_Dulwich_(6112761980).jpg) | Two Forms (Divided Circle) | Dulwich Park | 1969 | Barbara Hepworth | — | Sculpture | — | Stolen in December 2011.[38] |
 | Neon Tower | Roof of the Hayward Gallery | 1972 | Philip Vaughan | — | Sculpture | — | The sculpture stood in situ from 1972 to 2008, when it was taken down for renovation. Although the gallery has stated that it was originally commissioned as a temporary installation, the artist has disputed this and called for the work to be reinstated permanently.[42] |
| The Towers of Hackney | 1970s – 2009 | — | — | |||||
| Fallow Buck | Coombe Road, Kingston upon Thames | 1981 | David Wynne | — | Statue | — | Stolen in 2009 and never recovered.[43] | |
| Techtonic II | Opposite the entrance to Tower Three, London School of Economics | 1984 | Haydn Llewellyn Davies | — | Sculpture | — | Part of Louis Odette's 2005 bequest of sculptures to the LSE.[44] As of 2013 the sculpture is no longer at this location. | |
 | The Leopard | Outside 20 Cannon Street; from 2009, Station Approach, Leatherhead, Surrey | 1985 | Jonathan Kenworthy | Sculpture | — | Commissioned by Wates, the developers of 20 Cannon Street.[45] Relocated to that company's headquarters in 2009.[46] | |
 | Gates | 111 Buckingham Palace Road 51°29′43″N 0°08′45″W / 51.495217°N 0.145709°W | 1986 | Giuseppe Lund | — | Gates | — | Gates of jagged aluminium.[47] As of 2017 they are no longer at this location. |
 More images | The Artist as Hephaestus | 34–36 High Holborn | 1987 | Eduardo Paolozzi | — | Statue | — | Commissioned by the London and Paris Property Group for the site, which was the front façade of their new offices. The plaster and polystyrene model for the statue, which is a self-portrait, is in the National Portrait Gallery.[48] Sold at auction by Bonhams in 2012.[49] |
| Statues of Gary Glitter, Jimi Hendrix, Buddy Holly, Michael Jackson, Mick Jagger, Elton John, Annie Lennox, Madonna and Diana Ross | Rock Circus (the London Pavilion), Piccadilly Circus | c. 1989 | James Butler | Statues | [50] | |||
 | Subway murals | Elephant and Castle roundabout | 1991–1994 | David Bratby and others | Murals | — | Destroyed c. 2013.[51] | |
 | Statue of John Cass | Sir John Cass's Foundation, 31 Jewry Street | 1998 | After Louis-François Roubiliac | A. W. Cooksey | Statue | Grade II* | This replica, one of several made to mark the foundation's 250th anniversary, stood in the niche once occupied by Roubiliac's original.[52] (See below.) In 2020 it was removed in response to Black Lives Matter protests.[53] |
 | Under Circumstances | Outside 20 Manchester Square 51°31′01″N 0°09′13″W / 51.5170°N 0.1535°W | 1999 | Tony Cragg | — | Sculpture | — | Part of a series of works by the sculptor called Rational Beings, created by following the contours of a drawn line with stacked circles of polysterene. Here the resulting three-dimensional shape was carved in Belgian granite.[54] Removed c. 2016.[55] |
 | The Climber | On roof of 43–45 Notting Hill Gate | 2000 | Peter Logan | Kinetic architectural sculpture | — | All the moving parts of the sculpture had to be removed in 2013 after a piece collapsed and fell onto the pavement on 22 June that year.[56][57] Removed completely circa 2018. [1][2] | |
 More images | Statue of Terence Cuneo | London Waterloo station | 2004 | Philip Jackson | — | Statue | — | [58] |
 More images | One Nation Under CCTV | Newman Street, Fitzrovia | 2008 | Banksy | — | Mural | — | To produce this work Banksy erected and dismantled three storeys of scaffolding without being observed, despite the site being behind a tall fence and in full view of a CCTV camera.[59] Westminster City Council destroyed the work as an example to graffiti artists.[60] |
 | Statue of Michael Jackson | Craven Cottage, Fulham | 2011 | ? | — | Statue | — | In 2014 the statue was moved to the National Football Museum in Manchester.[61] |
 | Alien | Grosvenor Gardens, Westminster | 2012 | David Breuer-Weil | — | Sculpture | — | In 2015 the sculpture was moved to the National Trust property of Mottisfont in Hampshire.[62] |
.jpg) More images | Paleys upon Pilers | Aldgate | 2012 | Studio Weave | — | Sculpture | — | Installed for the 2012 Olympics, inspired by two poems by Geoffrey Chaucer who lived in Aldgate. Dismantled in 2015.[63][64] |
- Prior to the installation of the present statue of Oliver Cromwell in Parliament Square there was a different statue of Cromwell in another part of the square. It looked very similar to the one by Matthew Noble currently in Wythenshawe, Manchester, but it is not clear whether this is the same statue or one is a copy of the other.[citation needed]
Works replaced by replicas
edit| Image | Title / subject | Location and coordinates | Date | Artist / designer | Architect / other | Type | Designation | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Statue of Queen Anne | St Paul's Churchyard | 1712 | Francis Bird | ? | Statue group | Grade II* | The statue which stood outside St Paul's Cathedral was damaged by repeated attacks in the 19th century, and as it was in any case in rather poor condition, it was removed in 1885 together with the four statues at its base, and replaced by a copy, partly the work of Richard Claude Belt. The original was moved to a location near Hastings in Sussex.[65][66] |
 | Statue of Robert Geffrye | Geffrye Almshouses (now the Museum of the Home), Shoreditch | c. 1724 | John Nost | ? | Statue in niche | — | Geffrye's will provided for the creation of the almshouses; Nost's statue and the residents alike moved out to Mottingham in 1912. The replica (pictured) was installed that year, before the building opened as a museum in 1914.[67] |
 More images | Statue of Hans Sloane | Chelsea Physic Garden | 1732–1737 | John Michael Rysbrack | — | Statue | — | Commissioned in 1732, installed in a greenhouse in 1737 and moved to the centre of the garden in 1748. The statue deteriorated over time and was moved to the British Museum in 1983. A fibreglass replica was installed in its place; this too deteriorated and was replaced by a copy made of jesmonite.[68] That in turn was replaced in 2014 by a copy in Portland stone.[69] |
 More images | Statue of John Cass | Aldgate High Street (1751–1869); Jewry Street (1869–c. 1919) | 1751 | Louis-François Roubiliac | A. W. Cooksey (final outdoor setting) | Statue | — | Originally stood in a niche at the school funded by Cass (today The Aldgate School, and relocated). The statue was moved to premises on Jewry Street in 1869, which were rebuilt in 1898–1901. Moved indoors by 1919. In 1980 it was put on permanent loan to the Guildhall. A replica stood in the niche at Jewry Street from 1998 to 2020. (See above.)[52] |
 More images | Statue of Anna Pavlova | Victoria Palace Theatre | 1911 | Frank Matcham (possibly) | — | Statue | Gilded statue of the ballerina Anna Pavlova on the dome of the theatre. Taken down to protect it from bombing during World War II, and mislaid as a result. A replica (pictured) was installed in 2006.[70][71] | |
 | Woman with Fish | Cleveland Estate, Tower Hamlets (original); Millwall Park (replica, pictured) | 1959 | Frank Dobson | — | Sculpture | — | [38] |
 More images | Dr Salter's Daydream Alfred Salter | Cherry Gardens, Bermondsey 51°30′02″N 0°03′35″W / 51.50061°N 0.05973°W | 2014 | Diane Gorvin | — | Sculptures | — | The seated statue of Alfred Salter was stolen in 2011, after which the figures of his daughter Joyce and her cat were taken into safekeeping by Southwark Council.[72] The new work includes an additional sculpture portraying Salter's wife, Ada.[73] |
Works removed and subsequently returned
edit- The statue of Charles II in Soho Square was removed for many years to Grim's Dyke, the estate of W. S. Gilbert, and returned to its current position after the death of Gilbert's widow, who had willed it back to the square. It was originally accompanied by four other statues representing British rivers, and the current whereabouts of these is unknown; they have probably been destroyed or buried.
- The Temple Bar Gate by Christopher Wren with its associated statues was removed from its original location at Temple Bar in 1878. It was re-erected at Theobalds Park in Hertfordshire. In 2004 the gate was installed at a new location in the City of London, forming an entrance to the Paternoster Square development.[74]
See also
editReferences
editBibliography
edit- Blackwood, John (1989). London's Immortals: The Complete Outdoor Commemorative Statues. London and Oxford: Savoy Press.
- Bradley, Simon; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2003). London 6: Westminster. The Buildings of England. London and New Haven: Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-09595-1.
- Matthews, Peter (2018). London's Statues and Monuments. Oxford: Shire Publications.
- Ward-Jackson, Philip (2003). Public Sculpture of the City of London. Public Sculpture of Britain. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press.
- Ward-Jackson, Philip (2011). Public Sculpture of Historic Westminster: Volume 1. Public Sculpture of Britain. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press.
