Reading Statues
Jul 10
Reading is such a fundamental part of every culture that we statues incorporating it have been sculpted for as long as statues have been made. Here are 5 random reading statues I thought shareworthy,
1. The Reading Girl statue by Giovanni Ciniselli (Manchester, UK)
The Reading Girl statue by Giovanni Ciniselli (Photo Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/monikasm/4712254108/)
According to the Manchester City Council,1
“The white, marble statue on the left stair landing is “The Reading Girl” by Giovanni Ciniselli (1832-1883). She was bought in Italy by Daniel Adamson, the first chairman of the Manchester Ship Canal Company, and given to the library by his family in 1938. There is a bit of a mystery about what she is reading – we know that it was originally a poem called “The Angel’s Story” which was printed on paper and pasted into her marble book but, by the time she came to the library, this had disappeared and we have never been able to trace the poem since.”
2. StoryTime by Gary Price (Located at entrance to the Vacaville Public Library Cultural Center)
StoryTime by Gary Price (Photo Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/fossilfreak/191083774/in/set-1343337/)
This statue was made to enrich the culture in the area along with another great statue of a family reading together. Artist Gary Price has a lot of work involving reading and books. You can see more of his work here and here and here.
3. Reading Statue in the Digiansante Hotel in Bologna, Italy
Reading Statue in the Digiansante Hotel in Bologna, Italy (Photo Source: http://www.digiansantehotels.it/en/en_aemilia_photos.htm)
4. The Centennial Statue at the Coshocton Public Library by Alan Cottrill of Zanesville, OH
Centennial Statue at the Coshocton Public Library (Photo Source: http://www.coshoctonlibrary.org/green/centennial.php)
This wonderful statue has great meaning in it. It was the 100th anniversary statue made for the Coshocton Public Library in Ohio. From the official website,
The sculpture features a young boy holding an open book and sitting atop a stack of 100 books. Each book represents one year, and each ten represents a decade of the Library’s service to the community. The books are engraved with a title of lasting significance from the decade they represent. The final book, the one held by the boy, is untitled to allow the observer to imagine his or her favorite book at the top. Many of the titles on the Centennial Statue were chosen by contributors in honor or memory of loved ones. A plate mounted on the library near the statue bears the names and dedications of donors. See a list of the Centennial Statue book titles here.
5. The Hans Chrisian Andersen statue in Central Park, NY
Hans Christian Anderson in Central Park (Photo Source: http://fineartamerica.com/images-medium/hans-christian-anderson-joann-lense.jpg)
What a wonderfully fitting statue! Not only is he holding a book to read but he was an author, a brilliant author, of many creative, lovely childhood stories! This statue is perfect, duck and all. Here is a little information about the statue,2
At the western edge of Conservatory Water is one of the most popular statues in the park – a statue of master storyteller Hans Christian Andersen. Created by George Lober and donated to the park in 1956 this statue of the beloved Danish storyteller, along with his famous duckling companion, is the site of a story telling program that delights children every summer. Children love to crawl into the lap of the legendary children’s author, much to the delight of their camera weilding parents.
