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The Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain is located at the southeastern side of Piccadilly Circus in London, United Kingdom. Moved after World War II from its original position in the centre, it was erected in 1892–1893 to commemorate the philanthropic works of Lord Shaftesbury, who was a famous Victorian politician and philanthropist. The monument is surmounted by Alfred Gilbert's winged nude statue generally known as Eros. This has been called "London's most famous work of sculpture"; a graphical illustration of it is used as the symbol of the ''Evening Standard'' newspaper and appears on its masthead. It was the first sculpture in the world to be cast in aluminium and is set on a bronze fountain, which itself inspired the marine motifs that Gilbert carved on the statue. The use of a nude figure on a public monument was controversial at the time of its construction, but it was generally well received by the public. The ''Magazine of Art'' described it as "...a striking contrast to the dull ugliness of the generality of our street sculpture, ... a work which, while beautifying one of our hitherto desolate open spaces, should do much towards the elevation of public taste in the direction of decorative sculpture, and serve freedom for the metropolis from any further additions of the old order of monumental monstrosities." Although the statue is generally known as Eros, it was created as an image of his twin brother, Anteros.〔Lloyd & Mitchinson (2006) The book of general ignorance "Because of the bow and the nudity... everybody assumed it was Eros, the Greek god of love"〕 The sculptor Alfred Gilbert had already sculpted a statue of Anteros and, when commissioned for the Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain, chose to reproduce the same subject, who, as "The God of Selfless Love" was deemed to represent the philanthropic 7th Earl of Shaftesbury suitably. Gilbert described Anteros as portraying "reflective and mature love, as opposed to Eros or Cupid, the frivolous tyrant." The model for the sculpture was Gilbert's studio assistant, a 16-year-old Italian, Angelo Colarossi (born 1875).〔("Eros", National Conservation Centre )〕 Fernando Meacci was involved in the moulding of the fountain〔(British bronze sculpture founders and plaster figure makers, 1800–1980 – M )〕 and it was probably cast by George Broad & Son.〔(British bronze sculpture founders and plaster figure makers, 1800–1980 – B )〕 The memorial was unveiled by the Duke of Westminster on 29 June 1893. Following the unveiling there were numerous complaints. Some felt it was sited in a vulgar part of town (the theatre district), and others felt that it was too sensual as a memorial for a famously sober and respectable Earl. Some of the objections were tempered by renaming the statue as ''The Angel of Christian Charity'', which was the nearest approximation that could be invented in Christian terms for the role Anteros played in the Greek pantheon. However the name never became widely known and the statue became generally known as ''Eros'', the god of sensual love; quite inappropriate to commemorate the Earl, but just right to signify the carnal neighbourhood of London, into which Soho had developed. Where the bow was originally pointed is the subject of two urban myths. The first is that the archer is aiming up Shaftesbury Avenue. Sometimes, the story goes that this was a visual pun to commemorate the great philanthropist. If the archer were to release his arrow, its shaft would bury itself in Shaftesbury Avenue. The other is that the arrow is pointing to the Earl's country seat in Wimborne Saint Giles, Dorset. However, an 1896 photograph of the circus taken only three years after the statue's erection clearly shows the arrow pointing in a different direction, down Lower Regent Street aptly towards Parliament. This is proven by the position relative to the statue of Shaftesbury Avenue, the London Pavilion and the Criterion Theatre. The statue was removed for restoration in the 1980s and resited on its return in February 1985. During the restoration a set of plaster casts was unearthed in the V&A basements which revealed damage to the statue.〔(Eros Restored : For a Mere $250,000 You Can Own a Life-Size Casting of One of London's Best-Known Statues, May 31, 1987|Bevis Hillier )〕 The statue was also vandalised in 1990 and after radiography and restoration returned in 1994.〔(Repairs and Alterations to Listed Building Supplementary Planning Guidance )〕 In May 2012 the statue had a new bow string fitted after it was broken by a tourist.〔(Universal restring Eros after he broke his bow! )〕 In the winter of 2013–2014 the statue was covered with a PVC 'snow globe' featuring internal fans blowing the 'snowflakes'. This also had the function of protecting the statue from vandalism and it was planned to return in subsequent years. However strong winds caused the globe to become damaged and deflate and it wasn't subsequently repaired.〔(Piccadilly Circus Eros 'snow globe' will not return )〕 In winter 2014–2015 octagonal advertising hoardings forming a box for giant Christmas presents had a similar function.〔(NOV 28 2014| LOCAL AUTHORITY CONTRACT. Eros surrounded by box of giant Christmas presents )〕 ==See also== * 1893 in art * Greek mythology in western art and literature * Sefton Park, a park in Liverpool with a replica * Art Gallery of South Australia who have a replica 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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