Leyden Monument, Denholm

The Leyden Monument in Denholm, designed by architect Hector H. Orrock and sculpted by A. Handyside Ritchie in 1861, is a square-plan, Decorated Gothic spire dedicated to John Leyden. It features a stepped base topped by two stages of short clustered columns with foliate capitals. The lower stage has inscribed plaques, while the upper stage supports an open arrangement of trefoil-headed arches set beneath crocketed gablets, with a draped urn in the interior. Sculpted figures and animals adorn the corners, and a banded and crocketed pinnacle rises above. The monument is constructed from Swinton sandstone, with columns made of polished red Aberdeen granite. The plaques on the lower stage and between the stages commemorate Leyden and his descendant John Lamb Leyden, including Biblical quotations and extracts from Leyden's work. The monument is enclosed by decorative iron railings.