| The
white marble building at the Southern end of Calcutta's maidan continues
to be the city's pride and joy. The Victoria Memorial, with its formal
gardens and water courses was conceived by Lord Curzon to commemorate
the British Empire at its peak. Other colonial monuments within the
city have either been obliterated with time or have been renamed or
demolished. But the popularity of the "VM" seems to endure
for ever.
The Memorial consists of numerous hybrid features:
it has Italian-style statues over its entrances, Mughal domes in
its corners and tall elegant open colonnades along its sides. The
building was designed by Sir William Emerson and its construction
was completed in 1921. The main attraction at the memorial is the
huge somber statue of the Queen, which is flanked by two ornamental
tanks. Made of Makrana marble from Jodhpur, the Memorial is capped
by a dome bearing a revolving bronze figurine symbolizing victory.
|
