The statue of George III, Somerset House, formally titled George III and the River Thames,[1] is a Grade I listed outdoor bronze sculptural group depicting King George III and Neptune or Father Thames, located in the quadrangle of Somerset House, London, England.[2][3] The sculptor was John Bacon,[2] and the statue was erected between 1778 and 1789.[nb 1]
George III is dressed in Roman apparel, leaning on a rudder, flanked by the prow of a Roman boat and a lion.[3] Father Thames is reclining on a lower, semi-circular plinth, one hand on an urn with a cornucopia behind him.[3][2]
When Queen Charlotte first saw the statue of her husband she asked the sculptor 'Why did you make so frightful a figure?'. Bacon bowed and replied 'Art cannot always effect what is ever within the reach of Nature – the union of beauty and majesty.'[6]
51°30′41″N 0°07′03″W / 51.51133°N 0.11742°W / 51.51133; -0.11742
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