The Genius of Architecture
In exploring statues around Edinburgh, one thing becomes obvious - there are very few women represented in the city statuescape. We know of Helen Crummy, Queen Victoria and the African Woman and Child in Festival Square, commissioned by The City of Edinburgh Council to depict the city's stand against apartheid.
But, there is another statue of a woman called “The Genius of Architecture”. It is located at the lower level on the east side of West Princes Street Gardens.
The statue depicts a crowned, goddess-like woman in robes, in a classical Greek style standing on a hexagonal plinth.
The woman is placing laurel wreaths on the heads of two children in kilts. One of the children is kneeling, and using a trowel to construct a masonry column. The second child presents a plan to the woman. From ground level it appears that the plan has inscribed upon it both an angular octagon (eight pointed star) and a circle, both important masonic symbols. Historically, the octagon is used to represent eternal life and the eight pointed star also represents the cardinal and ordinal points of the compass. In the Christian tradition the baptismal font in churches is often carved in an octagonal shape. The circle is symbolic of the heavens and is again an important masonic symbol.
The statue was carved for the 1862 International Exhibition in London. On the rear of the statue is inscribed "William Brodie, R.S.A. Sculptor 1815-1881”. Brodie was a prolific sculptor and is responsible for a number of statues here and in Glasgow, including the bronze statue of Greyfriar's Bobby which sits at the corner of Candlemaker Row and George IV Bridge.
It is suggested that the model for the principal female is Lady Mary Gowans, the daughter of the sculptor. Mary married the architect Sir James Gowans soon after the death of his first wife, Elizabeth. Elizabeth died in the bath of their home at 34 Rosebank Cottages, in what have been described as "unusual circumstances”.
Sir James Gowans built a new family home "Rockville" on Napier Road for himself and Mary. Rockville was regarded as architecturally “unusual” and including a five-storey viewing tower. Sculpture in and around the house was created by his father-in-law, William Brodie. The statue ended up in the garden of 'Rockville', and in 1891, a subsequent owner gifted it to the Council who placed it in the Gardens.
There are a number of questions about the statue - are both the children male? Some have suggested that the kneeling child is male - engaged in physical constructing - the final manifestation of the architect design. Some have suggested that the standing child is female - representing the theory and creativity of the architect. Another question - the 2015 edition of “Monumental Edinburgh” by Gillon and McAuley suggest that the statue was sculpted by John Rhind.