Bronze statue of Shakespeare beneath carved frieze inscribed SHAKESPEARE

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A bronze figure of Shakespeare stands beneath a carved frieze that spells out his name, so the inscription does the work of identifying him before a visitor reads any plaque. Public monuments to the playwright became common in the nineteenth century, when English-speaking cities and towns were building statues to celebrate national literary heritage, and cast bronze was a favored material because it could be cast in detail and weathered well outdoors. Shakespeare died in 1616, and his plays, including *Hamlet* and *Macbeth*, were still being performed centuries later. Notice how the sculptor pairs the portrait figure with the lettering, a common device that gives a memorial its dignity and makes its subject unmistakable.

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