The Gift – in honour of our late Queen’s Platinum Jubilee

To mark our late Queen’s Platinum Jubilee last year, a pair of unique bronze sculptures of the United Kingdom, incorporating the Lion of England, the Unicorn of Scotland, the Dragon of Wales and the Elk of Northern Ireland, were presented to His Majesty King Charles III from Members of both Houses of Parliament. The sculptures, which will serve as illuminated beacons, are known as the ‘The Gift’ and were installed to the sides of the staircase leading to the fountain within New Palace Yard, at the Palace of Westminster.

Stonewest was also involved in a second project to refurbish elements of New Palace Yard and the two projects were carried out in tandem. Toby Moore, Bill Compton and our Parliamentary Estates Team had the privilege of assisting with the design development of the Pump Room hatch, incorporating new, lightweight, honeycomb-backed paving, to assist the maintenance team in gaining regular pump room access for inspections.

The procurement, supply and installation of new stainless steel hydraulically assisted hatches, York sandstone paving, incorporating inlaid bronze lettering, was also undertaken ahead of the prestigious ceremony before Christmas 2022. Stonewest also cleaned and repointed the Granite steps that lead up to the main fountain and surrounding masonry seating benches.

Stonewest were delighted to be part of the works Heritage team and involved in such a significant historic event celebrating Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s exceptional reign of 70 years and 214 days – the longest of any British monarch and the longest verified reign of any female monarch in history.

#stonewest #protectingourheritage #craftingourfuture #thegift #platinumjubilee

Image, bottom left:  Bill Compton, Stonewest – Bill lead the team in carrying our the works involved