Listed Building

The only legal part of the listing under the Planning (Listing Buildings and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997 is the address/name of site. Addresses and building names may have changed since the date of listing – see 'About Listed Buildings' below for more information. The further details below the 'Address/Name of Site' are provided for information purposes only.

Address/Name of Site

WEST PRINCES STREET GARDENS, ROSS FOUNTAINLB27911

Status: Designated

Documents

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Summary

Category
A
Group Category Details
100000019 - see notes
Date Added
14/12/1970
Supplementary Information Updated
15/10/2001
Local Authority
Edinburgh
Planning Authority
Edinburgh
Burgh
Edinburgh
NGR
NT 24969 73658
Coordinates
324969, 673658

Description

Jean-Baptiste Klagmann, sculptor, cast by Antoine Durenne, 1862. Tall ornate gilded cast-iron fountain in 2nd Empire style, quatrefoil in plan; 1st tier with lions' heads, scallop-shell basins and mermaids with over-flowing urns; 4 female figures representing Science, Art, Industry and Poetry above; surmounted by large female figure with cornucopia.

Statement of Special Interest

The A Group comprises The Allan Ramsay Monument, The Cottage, Dr Guthrie's Monument, The Police Box, The Ross Fountain, The Royal Scots Greys Monument, The Royal Scots Memorial, The Scottish American Memorial, The Shelters, The Simpson Monument, The Robert Louis Stevenson Memorial and The Statuary Group, all in West Princes Street Gardens. The Ross Fountain was displayed at the International Exhibition in London in 1862. It was purchased by the Edinburgh gun-smith Daniel Ross and presented to the City. It was shipped to Leith, and eventually erected in the Gardens in 1872. The fountain was cast in iron by Antoine Durenne, Maitre de Forges at Sommevoire sur Marne. . Klagmann also designed sculpture for the Medici fountain in the Jardin du Luxembourg, and for the Louvre Fountain. The design did not meet with universal approval in Edinburgh; it was described by Dean Ramsay, Minister of St John's Episcopal Church (whose own memorial, a Celtic cross designed by R Rowand Anderson, lies within the precinct of his church to the W of the fountain) as, 'grossly indecent and disgusting; insulting and offensive to the moral feelings of the community and disgraceful to the City.' The Fountain was restored 2001 by Edinburgh City Council in partnership with East of Scotland Water. West Princes Street Gardens were laid out by James Skene for the Princes Street proprietors circa 1820. In 1866 John Dick Peddie produced a plan, shown in 2 water-colours entitled 'the Athens of the North,' one looking NE across E Princes Street Gardens, showing Calton Hill with a completed National Monument/Parthenon, and the other, looking W across W Princes Street Gardens, showing the Gardens as a 'Walhalla' with a broad terrace with monuments and mausolea, fountains and a winter garden. The gardens were acquired by the city in 1876 and further landscaped by Robert Morham.

References

Bibliography

Appears on 1876 OS map. Grant OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH (1885) vol ii p 99. Gifford, McWilliam and Walker EDINBURGH (1984) p 317. EVENING NEWS 14th May 2001. SCOTSMAN 15th May 2001.

About Listed Buildings

Historic Environment Scotland is responsible for designating sites and places at the national level. These designations are Scheduled monuments, Listed buildings, Inventory of gardens and designed landscapes and Inventory of historic battlefields.

We make recommendations to the Scottish Government about historic marine protected areas, and the Scottish Ministers decide whether to designate.

Listing is the process that identifies, designates and provides statutory protection for buildings of special architectural or historic interest as set out in the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997.

We list buildings which are found to be of special architectural or historic interest using the selection guidance published in Designation Policy and Selection Guidance (2019)

Listed building records provide an indication of the special architectural or historic interest of the listed building which has been identified by its statutory address. The description and additional information provided are supplementary and have no legal weight.

These records are not definitive historical accounts or a complete description of the building(s). If part of a building is not described it does not mean it is not listed. The format of the listed building record has changed over time. Earlier records may be brief and some information will not have been recorded.

The legal part of the listing is the address/name of site which is known as the statutory address. Other than the name or address of a listed building, further details are provided for information purposes only. Historic Environment Scotland does not accept any liability for any loss or damage suffered as a consequence of inaccuracies in the information provided. Addresses and building names may have changed since the date of listing. Even if a number or name is missing from a listing address it will still be listed. Listing covers both the exterior and the interior and any object or structure fixed to the building. Listing also applies to buildings or structures not physically attached but which are part of the curtilage (or land) of the listed building as long as they were erected before 1 July 1948.

While Historic Environment Scotland is responsible for designating listed buildings, the planning authority is responsible for determining what is covered by the listing, including what is listed through curtilage. However, for listed buildings designated or for listings amended from 1 October 2015, legal exclusions to the listing may apply.

If part of a building is not listed, it will say that it is excluded in the statutory address and in the statement of special interest in the listed building record. The statement will use the word 'excluding' and quote the relevant section of the 1997 Act. Some earlier listed building records may use the word 'excluding', but if the Act is not quoted, the record has not been revised to reflect subsequent legislation.

Listed building consent is required for changes to a listed building which affect its character as a building of special architectural or historic interest. The relevant planning authority is the point of contact for applications for listed building consent.

Find out more about listing and our other designations at www.historicenvironment.scot/advice-and-support. You can contact us on 0131 668 8914 or at designations@hes.scot.

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Printed: 28/03/2024 10:30