Description of the Sketch for Lord Nelson Monument by Charles Rossi Sculptor R.A. 10, June 1806

SPCAA/CR/2/3

18 June 1806

This letter is mounted on cardboard along with two other letters.

Document detailing Rossi’s deign for a monument honouring Lord Nelson. A bust of Lord Nelson is described as being an elevated and conspicuous part of the composition, followed by Minerva with marine elements on one side and Hercules on the other. The Minerva figure represents Nelson’s nautical wisdom and the Hercules figure symbolizes his courage and the irresistable energy of his mind. ‘The City’ is described as standing near the bust is intended to express ‘a melancholy attention to the portraiture of the deceased Hero and mingling the sentiments of veneration with regret’. Two columns stand behind these figures, one inscribed with ‘Trafalgar’ and the other with ‘Nile’ and each is topped with a figure of Victory, meant to represent two of Nelson’s greatest victories. This described composition is outlined as being elevated on a general basement ten feet high, with the middle of the basement front intended for inscription and a relief of Nelson on the quarter deck of the Victory at the moment of his mortal wounding. The principal figure are to be of a height no less than seven feet. The background of the whole is a pyramid that displays over Nelson’s bust the emblems of immortality encicrling his name. The aesthetic of the monument is meant to illustrate the ‘splendid character of a man whose acheivements have so eminently contributed to the safety and Glory of his Country’.

Access is strictly by appointment only with the architectural archivist. Material dating from 1990 to the present day is not currently available for public consultation. Some records are subject to a closure period of 75 years under the Data Protection Act.

SPCAA/CR/2/1, SPCAA/CR/2/2, SPCAA/CR/1/3, SPCAA/CR/1/4, SPCAA/CR/1/5