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As in all true Victorian gardens, the Public Gardens contain a series of statues: Flora, Ceres, and Diana; and three fountains: the Nymph or Jubilee Fountain, the Soldier's Memorial Fountain, and the modern forecourt fountain between Horticultural Hall and Spring Garden Road.
Flora (shown at left) is thought of as a goddess of budding springtime. She reigns over the fruit trees, vines, grains, and all flowering plants. This typical depiction shows her graceful and full bodied, wearing a long, snug gown and holding a laurel wreath and spring flowers.
Ceres, the Roman grain goddess, represents the fertile and cultivated soil and its harvest. This typical portrayal shows Ceres dressed in a long full robe, wearing a crown of leaves and holding a cornucopia of harvest fruits.
Diana, the Roman
goddess of the chase and of forests, appears characteristically as a young virgin. Her beauty is severe, with her hair drawn back, her short tunic tucked up into her girdle, her feet bare.
The Nymph Fountain was erected in 1897 to honour Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee. It is classical in style. The stem rises from a heavy formal base in the form of a Corinthian column surrounded by four water babies riding on sea serpents. The large basin holds the nymph Egeria, who, according to myth, was turned into a fountain when she tried to hide in a forest following her husband's death. She carries an urn, the original source of water, and stands among bulrushes, a modern addition to the portrayal.
There is also the Soldier's Boer War Memorial Fountain shown on Gardens Features cont'd
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