Pretty seat for Flora

Aug 18, 2012 - Age Correspondent

Flora Fountain is now a name that belongs not just to the beautiful heritage structure that is a favourite place for tourists to stop and pose for a photo or two, it is a name that is synonymous with the area itself. But the structure that gave the area its name wasn’t originally intended for the spot at all.

Built for the then staggering sum of 9,000 sterling pounds (approximately Rs 47,000 in those days), the structure (which shows the goddess Flora atop the fountain, surrounded by four mythological figures) was meant to be the centre of attraction at the Byculla zoo, or the Victoria Gardens.
It was also meant to be named after the then governor of Bombay, Sir Bartle Frere. Both — the location of this Portland stone statue and its name — underwent a change before the unveiling. But the history of the city has been the richer perhaps, for it.

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