Shakespeare Monument on east side of the Great Gardens of New Place is a Grade II* listed building in the Stratford-on-Avon local planning authority area, England. First listed on 9 February 1972. Monument. 3 related planning applications.
Shakespeare Monument on east side of the Great Gardens of New Place
- WRENN ID
- strange-render-sienna
- Grade
- II*
- Local Planning Authority
- Stratford-on-Avon
- Constituency
- Stratford-on-Avon MP: Manuela Perteghella (LD)
- Country
- England
- Date first listed
- 9 February 1972
- Type
- Monument
- Address
- Shakespeare Monument on east side of the Great Gardens of New Place, Chapel Lane, Stratford-Upon-Avon, CV37 6EF
- OS grid reference
- SP 202 547
- Coordinates
- 52.19083, -1.70585
- Source
- Historic England listing
Description
The Shakespeare Monument, located on the east side of the Great Gardens of New Place, is a significant structure from 1789, created by Thomas Banks RA for Alderman John Boydell. It was relocated to its current position in 1871, with a cornice added around 1891.
Constructed from pale ashlar limestone, the monument features a rear wall made of red brick, while the 19th-century plinth and cornice are made from different types of ashlar limestone.
The monument has a rectangular shape and faces west. It showcases a high-relief sculpture of Shakespeare, attended by the figures of Painting and Poetry, all under a bracketed pedimental-gabled canopy and set upon a large plinth. The central figure of Shakespeare is depicted in contemporary dress, seated on a rock outcrop. To his left stands the Dramatic Muse, dressed in flowing robes and holding a lyre and a wreath. To the right is the Genius of Painting, draped and holding brushes and a palette. The rock outcrop is positioned on a rectangular plinth that features an inscription from Hamlet Act I, Scene ii: “HE WAS A MAN, TAKE HIM FOR ALL IN ALL/ I SHALL NOT LOOK UPON HIS LIKE AGAIN.”
The large plain plinth below bears the inscription: THIS ALTO RELIEVO/ REPRESENTING SHAKESPEARE SEATED BETWEEN THE DRAMATIC MUSE AND THE GENIUS OF PAINTING/ (FORMERLY IN THE FRONT OF THE SHAKESPEARE GALLERY, PALL MALL, LONDON,)/ WAS PRESENTED TO THE TOWN BY/ CHARLES HOLTE BRACEBRIDGE ESQ.,/ ATHERSTONE HALL,/ 1871.
The rear wall is primarily constructed in Flemish Garden Wall (Sussex) Bond.
Local climate
Shakespeare Monument on east side of the Great Gardens of New Place receives an average of 760 mm of rain a year. This makes it drier than 67% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is lower than that of 67% of listed buildings.
It experiences an average of 36 freeze-thaw cycles a year, more than 61% of listed buildings. Of these, 17 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.
Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.
More on this building
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- No EPC on record for this property
- No sale records on file
- Related listed building consents — 3 applications
- Detailed attributes — period, style, materials, features
- Flood risk assessment
- Radon risk assessment
- Weather exposure and heating demand — rain and frost month by month and year by year, wind direction, solar and humidity
Matched applications, energy data and sale records are assembled automatically and may contain errors. Flag incorrect data.
Similar buildings
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- 4 Monument to John Heminge and Henry Condell in Former Churchyard of Church of St Mary Aldermanbury
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