New Look for N.Y. Culture Guardians

  New York Public Library officials unveiled their newest project in mid-November: The renovation of the two Tennessee marble lions that sit outside the library building in midtown Manhattan.
  The 93-year-old statues – the objects of countless tourist photos, rambunctious children and the city’s pigeon population – withstood the elements surprisingly well. The 30’ X 20’ carvings mainly suffered from urban grime and hair-thin corrosion cracks, according to an Associated Press report.
  One lion needed some stainless-steel pins to stabilize a large crack on its head, said John Griswold, a sculpture conservator on the project. Small cracks on both lions received a low-strength mortar to protect against erosion, as well as an overall cleaning with toothbrushes.
  The two statues, designed in 1911 by Edward Clark Potter and carved by the Piccirilli Brothers, were originally nicknamed Leo Astor and Leo Lenox for two of the library’s founders, John Jacob Astor and James Lenox. The pair received their current names – Patience and Fortitude – from famed New York Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia in the 1930s.
  Aside from the restoration, the lions will get one more bit of protection for the future. Kids of all ages won’t be hopping on the manes anymore; climbing on the statues is now prohibited.