Exterior

History: The statue is one of a number of lead statues at Powis which have been attributed to the studio of John Van Nost, and which are assumed to have been made for the Baroque water garden (largely completed, 1705), which formerly occupied the land at the foot of the garden terraces. This statue is signed by Van Nost's pupil Andries Carpentiere. The statues probably used lead from the Powis family's own mine at Llangynog, Montgomeryshire. The water gardens were demolished between 1801 and 1809, and it is likely that this statue was sited in its present position shortly afterwards.

Description: Lead figure of Hercules on a stone plinth. Hercules is depicted wearing a lion-skin and slaying the hydra (carved in stone), using a club which is made of wood.

A Baroque sculpture of exceptional quality and power, which is of particular historical interest as it was made for the lost Baroque water gardens at Powis - one of the few surviving relics of them.

Reference: National Trust, Powis, 1988, p.42-3;

External Links

• Cadwr Listing
• Wikidata Q17743174

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  The Listed Buildings and Other Principal Structures at the Royal Gunpowder Mills Waltham Abbey
• 
  Cornwall (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Drawing up a Local Listed Building Consent Order: Historic England Advice Note 6
• 
  Worcestershire Revised Edition (Buildings of England) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Department for Communities Listed Historic Buildings of Northern Ireland: Information Guide for the 2nd Survey of Historic Buildings
• 
  Yorkshire: York and the East Riding (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)