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Clydeport Building

Mitchell Library, Glasgow Collection

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Clydeport Building

A sculpture of a woman and a bull next to the dome on the roof of the Clydeport Building in Robertson Street, 1996. Sculptor Albert Hodge's figures from ancient mythology have been described as the lovers Europa and Zeus (disguised as a bull), or as a bull being led by the Greek goddess Demeter (Ceres in ancient Roman mythology), the goddess of fertility or harvests.

The Clydeport Building, headquarters of what was originally the Clyde Navigation Trust and then the Clyde Port Authority, was designed by J J Burnet and built using Giffnock stone by Morrison & Mason, 1883-1886. The sculpture illustrated here belongs to the extension built 1906-1908.

As befits the headquarters of one of the most powerful bodies in Glasgow, the building was designed to a high specification and rivals the City Chambers for the magnificence of its interior. Stone cleaning and floodlighting in 1986 enhanced the rich architectural features of the building's exterior.

Reference: Illustrations vol.35B, p.88

Reproduced with the permission of Glasgow City Council, Libraries Information and Learning

Keywords:
bulls, Ceres, Clyde Navigation Trust, Clyde Port Authority, Clydeport Building, Demeter, domes, Europa, goddesses, Morrison & Mason, mythology, sculptures, statues, stone cleaning, women, Zeus



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