Jephson Memorial

The Jephson Memorial is a memorial featuring a statue of Dr. Henry Jephson on a plinth, set within a circular, domed temple. It was constructed between 1848 and 1849, designed by D.G. Squirill, with the statue created by Peter Hollins. The statue is made of Carrara marble and stands on a Sicilian marble pedestal, all housed in a sandstone ashlar temple topped with a lead roof and a cast-iron grill. The entrance is approached by a flight of eight steps, leading to a tooled architrave, a pulvinated bay-leaf frieze, and a cornice that is topped with a carved coat of arms. The temple features a solid circular drum surrounded by a peristyle of eight Corinthian columns, an architrave, a frieze, and a dentil cornice topped with a frieze of C-scrolls. Inside, the statue of Jephson, dressed in doctor's robes, stands approximately 7 feet high on a cylindrical pedestal that is about 2 meters tall. The grill covers the opening to the interior.

Historically, the foundation stone was laid by Lady Somerville on May 13, 1848, and the temple was completed and opened on May 29, 1849. The memorial is located in what was formerly Newbold Gardens, an open space established in 1836, which was laid out and planted from 1846 to 1848 and renamed in honor of Dr. Henry Jephson, a well-regarded local medical practitioner. The Gardens are listed in the Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England.