Listed Building

The only legal part of the listing under the Planning (Listing Buildings and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997 is the address/name of site. Addresses and building names may have changed since the date of listing – see 'About Listed Buildings' below for more information. The further details below the 'Address/Name of Site' are provided for information purposes only.

Address/Name of Site

WEST MEADOWS PARK, SUNDIAL, RAILINGS AND GATELB27930

Status: Designated

Documents

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Summary

Category
B
Group Category Details
100000020 - see notes
Date Added
23/03/2000
Supplementary Information Updated
23/03/2000
Local Authority
Edinburgh
Planning Authority
Edinburgh
Burgh
Edinburgh
NGR
NT 25216 72730
Coordinates
325216, 672730

Description

Sir James Gowans, 1886. Sundial, bronze armillary sphere on octagonal base. 8 different kinds of freestone, in 11 courses (see Notes). Red sandstone base and cap Moulded base course; facets alternately polished and recessed and panelled; heraldic shields to facets of corniced cap. Surrounded by cast-iron railings and gate.

Statement of Special Interest

B group comprises the Masons' Pillars in Melville Drive and the Sundial in West Meadows Park, Melville Drive, both designed by Sir James Gowans. The sundial was erected in commemoration of the opening of the Edinburgh International Exhibition by His Royal Highness Albert Victor, Prince of Wales, on 6th May 1886.

11 courses of stone, each engraved with the name of the quarry from which the stone derives:

1st red stone from Moat Quarry

2nd red stone fron Corncockle

3rd yellow stone from Whitsome Newton

4th yellow stone from Cragg

5th blue stone from Myreton

6th yellow stone from Cocklaw

7th yellow stone from Redhall

8th blue stone from Myreton

9th red stone from Ballochmyle

10th blue stone from Myreton

11th (base of armillary sphere) yellow stone from Redhall

The bronze armillary sphere also acts as a sundial. The facets of the base are engraved with mottoes and homilies on the subject of time, eg 'Time is the chrysalis of eternity,' and 'Well arranged time is the surest sign of a well arranged mind.'

The facets of cap bear shields - the Coronet of Prince Albert, the Arms of the Marquis of Lothian, the cipher of the Lord Provost of Edinburgh, the City Arms and the Scottish Arms.

References

Bibliography

Gowans MODEL DWELLING HOUSES (1886) pp49-51, ill p48. McAra SIR JAMES GOWANS - ROMANTIC RATIONALIST (1975). McMillan (ed) BUILDING STONES OF EDINBURGH (1999) pp102-105. Easton (ed) BY THE THREE GREAT ROADS (1988) pp149-151.

About Listed Buildings

Historic Environment Scotland is responsible for designating sites and places at the national level. These designations are Scheduled monuments, Listed buildings, Inventory of gardens and designed landscapes and Inventory of historic battlefields.

We make recommendations to the Scottish Government about historic marine protected areas, and the Scottish Ministers decide whether to designate.

Listing is the process that identifies, designates and provides statutory protection for buildings of special architectural or historic interest as set out in the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997.

We list buildings which are found to be of special architectural or historic interest using the selection guidance published in Designation Policy and Selection Guidance (2019)

Listed building records provide an indication of the special architectural or historic interest of the listed building which has been identified by its statutory address. The description and additional information provided are supplementary and have no legal weight.

These records are not definitive historical accounts or a complete description of the building(s). If part of a building is not described it does not mean it is not listed. The format of the listed building record has changed over time. Earlier records may be brief and some information will not have been recorded.

The legal part of the listing is the address/name of site which is known as the statutory address. Other than the name or address of a listed building, further details are provided for information purposes only. Historic Environment Scotland does not accept any liability for any loss or damage suffered as a consequence of inaccuracies in the information provided. Addresses and building names may have changed since the date of listing. Even if a number or name is missing from a listing address it will still be listed. Listing covers both the exterior and the interior and any object or structure fixed to the building. Listing also applies to buildings or structures not physically attached but which are part of the curtilage (or land) of the listed building as long as they were erected before 1 July 1948.

While Historic Environment Scotland is responsible for designating listed buildings, the planning authority is responsible for determining what is covered by the listing, including what is listed through curtilage. However, for listed buildings designated or for listings amended from 1 October 2015, legal exclusions to the listing may apply.

If part of a building is not listed, it will say that it is excluded in the statutory address and in the statement of special interest in the listed building record. The statement will use the word 'excluding' and quote the relevant section of the 1997 Act. Some earlier listed building records may use the word 'excluding', but if the Act is not quoted, the record has not been revised to reflect subsequent legislation.

Listed building consent is required for changes to a listed building which affect its character as a building of special architectural or historic interest. The relevant planning authority is the point of contact for applications for listed building consent.

Find out more about listing and our other designations at www.historicenvironment.scot/advice-and-support. You can contact us on 0131 668 8914 or at designations@hes.scot.

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