Panoramic view of Piccadilly Circus
by Diliff, http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Piccadilly_Circus_Panorama_-_April_2007.jpg, and used under GNU Free Documentation License
Piccadilly Circus is a road junction and public space at London's West End, in the City of Westminster. It was built in 1819, to connect Regent Street with the shopping district of Piccadilly. The name "Circus" comes from the Latin, meaning circle, and refers to a circular open space at a street junction. Its status as a major traffic junction made Piccadilly Circus a busy meet up point and a tourist attraction.
Piccadilly Circus is characterised by its neon signs and video advertisement displays. Today, however, only one building carries these advertising hoardings - it is on the northwestern corder, between Shaftesbury Avenue and Glasshouse Street.
To the southwestern side of Piccadilly Circus is the Shaftesbury Monument Memorial Fountain. It was erected in 1892-93, originally at the centre of the Circus, but was moved after World War II to its present position. The fountain commemorates the philanthropic works of Lord Shaftesbury, a famous Victorian politician and philanthropist. The monument is topped with the winged statue of Anteros, the Greek god of selfless philanthropic love, and twin brother to Eros (who was known to the Romans as Cupid). It was the first statue in the world to be cost in aluminium.
The statue was unveiled to an unreceptive public. Some felt that it was inappropriate to site it in the theatre district, a vulgar part of town, while others felt it was too sensual for a memorial to the respectable Earl. Some attempted to rename it The Angel of Christian Charity, in an effort to invent something Christian for the role of Anteros. But that name never gained much popularity. Instead, the public erroneously called it Eros, the Greek god of sensual love, not appropriate to remember the Earl, but quite right for the carnal neighbourhood of Piccadilly Circus.
Statue of Anteros, Piccadilly Circus, London
by Michael Reeve and used under GNU Free Documentation License
|
