This summer, when you are at the Palace for the Summer Opening of Buckingham Palace, you will have a few moments to stand in front of the Old Palace which was the design and lavish work of the architect NASH. When you are in the Quadrangle of the Palace, before entering into the Palace’s State Rooms, look up and admire the wonderful Bath Stone carvings which adorn this beautiful old building. In the summer, when I am wandering through the Palace, I get a bit irritated by tourists who ignore the details of the palace and spent no more than 20 minutes “running through” the Palace Tour. Please, stop for a moment and enjoy these three sculptures; they are splendid.
This pediment sculpture symbolizes Britannia presenting Neptunes’s spear–all symbolic of Britain’s leading position at the time as the great maritime nation:
The second Bath Stone sculpture I would like to point out is the victory at Waterloo which ended Napoleon’s threat once and for all:
The third historical sculpture is the death of Lord Nelson at the Battle of Trafalgar which ended Napoleon’s plans to defeat Britain on the seas. I love this fabulous bit of Bath Stone:
Please, don’t rush through the Palace. Step back and enjoy what you are visiting. I would buy a guide book at the Palace the day before and spend the evening before your visit reading about your visit the next day. After your visit, step across the street and have some good old spaghetti in my favorite little restaurant opposite the Royal Mews on Palace Street.
YOU ARE GOING TO HAVE A WONDERFUL DAY.
Thomas Moore email: TMooreSr@me.com Telephone: 801.791.9918
Excellent advice: Read up before and after!
Comment by Kneasles — April 18, 2012 @ 8:29 pm