1876: Minerva Rises
October 18, 2019
By AHNZ
Visiting Invercargill a year ago yesterday, 17 October, 2018, I deliberately set out to pay my respects to the goddess of wisdom. The Greeks called her Athena among the Romans and Southlanders she goes by Minerva. Shockingly, all that remained was a mutilated stump as the symbol of wisdom had been amputated from her city!
“Minerva will remain as long as art and learning flourish and civilisation advances.”- Peter McEwan, Invercargill Athenaeum President; Southland Times (3/7/1876)
Invercargill Athenaeum
Back in New Zealand’s early, more anarchistic, days people got together and did things for themselves. Un-official places of learning sprung up as an institutional consequence of Dignity Culture prospering. Sometimes these places were called Mechanics Institutes, others distinguished theirs by the title ‘athenaeum’ in a classical call-back to ancient Rome.
Invercargill Athenaeum got going in July 1870 when the settlement was only about 10 years old. It was an art gallery, a museum, a library, a place of learning and music and sport. These days we could not conceive of such a thing without The State paying for it and running it. This athenaeum grew itself and constructed a landmark building, finally topping it with a the statue of Minerva on 1 July 1876.
“Saturday, the first of July, will be deservedly remembered in connection with the history of the Invercargill Athenaeum as a red-letter day, for on that day the building was completely finished by the ceremonious unveiling of the statue of Minerva..”- Southland Times
The State, of course, is always jealous of free people looking after their own needs. In this case it took another 40 years for the State to get its grubby hands on it by special legislation. This reminds me of the Leys Institute which I visited last weekend, another private initiative to bring light and wisdom to the people. Thomson Leys created for Ponsonby, Auckland, a wonderful ‘athenaeum’ in 1906 which The State took over in 1964 and has broken up into its component parts. Once a library, gym, lecture room, a community hub, it is now only nominally a single entity or any sort of ‘institute’. I could not even make a direct phone call to the Leys Institute without first going through Phil Goff’s Supercity Switchboard and explaining why I wanted to speak to the librarians! Auckland Council thus keep a close eye on their captured castle and its doings and have the power and control over this and all other previously open venues. Might come in handy for deplatforming speakers and groups that The State disapproves of, eh?
The State Takes It, The State Breaks It
“AN ACT to vest the Invercargill Athenaeum and the Property of same in the Mayor, Councillors, and Burgesses of the Borough of Invercargill.”- Invercargill Athenaeum Act 1916; nzlii.org
The Athenaeum and its building on Dee Street are long gone but the statue has remained proudly standing until now. The main excuse for stripping her appears to be so that a workman’s office can be plonked down on her spot outside the defunct Southland Museum on the pretence that it is being repaired for a reopening. There’s a lot of that going ’round..
1969: Rotorua Museum & 1969: Ripped off in Rotorua
1932: Robert McDougall Art Gallery
Invercargill’s 1876 statue of Minerva was cut down
Ben’s World:
Barbarians At the Gates: The systematic looting of our galleries archives and libraries
The more pretentious pretence is that Minerva may need repairs and she needed to be cut down so this could be determined.
“The statue is made of cast iron and exposure to weather means it is in need of repairs and conservation treatment…stored so that it can be inspected by a metal conservator” says Invercargill City Council. “Paul Horner said the statue was beginning to show its age…if the statue remained outside, it would suffer the same fate as it had now…the deterioration is only going to be ongoing” reports Stuff.
All of this is totally ambiguous and abstract. What does ‘show its age’ and ‘same fate’ and ‘the deterioration’ mean in terms of objective facts? These are Feels, vibes, insinuations.
“After 140 years of exposure to the elements, the cast iron statue has damage including corrosion, cracks, moss and mould damage and surface soiling.”- ibid
To look at the statue up to a year ago it appeared to be in excellent shape. She’s cast iron, after all. Most of these (unattributed to anyone) ailments claimed by a nameless Stuff writer could be fixed in situ. The $5,000 spent on the godendectomy and re-seating could easily sort out the moss and soiling etc.
Cracks sound serious though- why isn’t anyone being quoted on that? Anybody got a photo to demonstrate? It all sounds a bit suspicious and anti-wisdom to me. Yet another State smashing of enlightenment symbols. I’m highly sceptical of seeing Minerva again for a long long long time.
—
Ref. Southland Times (3/7/1876); Papers Past
Image ref. Minerva on her feet not so long ago; Stuff
Image ref. Deicide, or the rubble of ragnarok; AHNZ Archive, 2018
Image ref. Athenaeum, Invercargill; Te Papa
Update 2021: “An ICC spokeswoman said the restoration projected cost was $14,398.56, against an original budget of $23,954.89.” Actually, this (‘make work’?) task was reported at the time to “be about $50,000.” Still outrageous suspiciously ‘payola’. Ref. Desire to see Minerva on display again, ODT
—
Update: Email correspondence with the Curator Manager following this article of April 2020…
——– Original Message ——–
| Subject: | RE: Minerva |
|---|---|
| Date: | Mon, 6 Apr 2020 05:09:36 +0000 |
| From: | David Dudfield <David.Dudfield@southlandmuseum.co.nz> |
| To: | ‘Anarchist_History@anarkiwi.co.nz’ <Anarchist_History@anarkiwi.co.nz> |
Hi Rick,
Thank you for your query about Minvera. The project was discussed at the Trust Board’s February meeting so it was certainly a surprise to see it in the news today.
The funding applications referred to in this article were submitted under the guidance of a conservator who specialises in this area of heritage conservation. The first condition assessment was completed in March 2016. It identified multiple issues with the statue and outlined the required treatment process. The removal of the statue from display in November 2018 enabled further assessment and monitoring to be carried out and highlighted the need for timely action to prevent further losses to the structure. The rust referred to in the article is one of the issues that may be addressed as part of any future treatment as advised by the conservator.
I hope this helps.
Best regards
David
From: Rick Giles [mailto:Anarchist_History@anarkiwi.co.nz]
Sent: Monday, 6 April 2020 7:03 p.m.
To: David Dudfield
Subject: RE: Minerva
Thanks for that
Please can you share the 2016 or 2020 report? I want to get specific about what the damage is.
Thanks
R
——– Original Message ——–
| Subject: | RE: Minerva |
|---|---|
| Date: | Tue, 7 Apr 2020 03:17:53 +0000 |
| From: | David Dudfield <David.Dudfield@southlandmuseum.co.nz> |
| To: | ‘Rick Giles’ <Anarchist_History@anarkiwi.co.nz> |
Thanks for your email Rick,
The request to seek lotteries funding that we presented to the museumâs Trust Board is multi layered. If our application is successful, the first stage would be to contract a metals conservator to fully assess and report on the interior and exterior of the statue. Minervaâs interior was not previously accessible to the conservator as the statue was mounted on a concrete plinth. It is hoped this assessment will help us gain a deeper understanding of the full extent Minervaâs structural issues. This will also help us tailor a treatment programme to address these concerns.
We realise that the Southland community is very interested in what is happening with Minerva, so we will be providing regular updates about her journey on our facebook page (if our application is successful). Thank you again for your interest.
I hope this helps,
David
From: Rick Giles [mailto:Anarchist_History@anarkiwi.co.nz]
Sent: Tuesday, 7 April 2020 4:45 p.m.
To: David Dudfield
Subject: RE: Minerva
Appreciate your time and your diplomatic language skills but it’s information I’m asking for.
” The first condition assessment was completed in March 2016. It identified multiple issues with the statue”
Please will you make this March 2016 condition assessment available? I want to read about what these issues are as well as the required treatment process.
” The removal of the statue from display in November 2018 enabled further assessment and monitoring to be carried out and highlighted the need for timely action to prevent further losses to the structure. ”
Please will you make these observations available? I’d like to know what assessments have been made and, especially, see these damaged insides that have now been made accessible. Did it turn out after all that the cast iron was rusting from within?
“The rust referred to in the article is one of the issues that may be addressed as part of any future treatment as advised by the conservator. ”
That it ‘may be addressed’ hints that there is no urgency and perhaps no need after all to attend to rusting. Please let’s see what the examination revealed?
Thanks,
Rick
7 thoughts on "1876: Minerva Rises"
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Hi there, I am originally from Invercargill, born in the old maternity hospital where McDonalds now is. Very disappointed they removed that classic old building along with the PO and the underground mens public toilets. These and many more buildings use to fascinate me in my youth. I am now living in Dunedin, which also has many majestic old buildings. I have noted similar old buildings in the Greco-Roman style are all over the world. I am studying a subject which many consider conspiracy, Mudfloods and the Tartaria Empire. I dont believe the official narrative about this but I have seen far too much evidence to believe that history as we are told is concrete solid. There seems to be a large portion of world history missing as nobody can explain how these massive majestic buildings were built in the times of horses and carts. Old coins I have seen with dates on them such as 1745 or any other date seem rather odd as most of the coins I have looked it, the 1 seems to be an capital I or even a J on some. What I am looking at is the Biblical timeline and the 1000 year kingdom. I dont want to go into it too much, I have many old photos of Invercargill which do not seem to add up or make sense in retrospect. I am wondering if you have any material that may further help me in my area of focus. I do not believe in the mudflood necessarily but the evidence I have come across leads me to believe ‘they’ are hiding a large portion of our history. I am not a crackpot, just interested in making sense of history from my own perspective.
The old post office was ornate inside and out, with decorated tiles that use to give me a feeling of awe and a deep sense of a great history that seems to me, ‘they’ are trying to erase.
I would really appreciate your input here, and further correspondence via email.
Kind Regards.
Dion.
Well good for you having an open mind. What’s the top 1 or 2 of our buildings you don’t think pre-oil tech could build? Maybe we can find photos of them being built and sort you out.
I am not questioning whether they were capable, what I am questioning is the speed with which they were built. Many of these large buildingds were completed in double quick time without large cranes. If you look at any of the photos of the Chicago Fair in 1893, the same anomaly appears, the speed with which these buildings were built seems absurd, and any photos of old cities with magnificent buildings but no people. The post office and the maternity hospital would be start. And the statue of the angelic like figure and the man with the torch that exist in early photos of the Invercargill PO. Identical stone or marble figures can be seen in old photos all around the world, what do they represent and why did we demolish them, why? they are majestic and beautiful works. But the disappearance of them around the world seems to have occurred around the same time. I am not one for assumptions but I am one for questioning everything, especially what seems like obvious anomalies, to me. If you could humour me and have a look at the Chicago fair of 1893, then let me know what your thought are. Too many things do not add up for me and I may be clutching at straws but I want to make sense of this myself. A non-assuming and open mind is optimal if one is to avoid believing lies and false doctrines. I have added you on twitter.
Kind regards, Dion.
Thank you for the reply.
Well, most of New Zealand history was made by a fraction of the population we have now. When we were just 2 or 3 million it was pretty normal for even the big cities to be totally without people in broad daylight. That’s how they made the film ‘The Quiet Earth’ (1985.)
As to the speed, I’ve seen that too. My explanation is that compliance costs and red tape have rocketed in our era. We are much more corrupt these days so projects are not just about building but laundering money. Think of the Saftyism we have now. Road cones on top of road cones. Risk adverse. Back in the good old days they got it done.
The fine old buildings and institutions had to go because our culture changed. The symbols of the old world must have their meanings re-assigned or go into body bags to make way for the new world. This happens all the time. For example, dozens of historical buildings that were fine and in use were suddenly re-assigned “dangerous” and closed down on pretense of not being earthquake safe after 2011. Or think of the Robert McDougall art gallery in Christchurch mothballed so that the gov. could replace it with a gallery they made. Or Founders Theater in Hamilton needing to be smashed up because otherwise it would compete with the one the gov. is building. Greymouth Hospital was built to last and had room to build up but the entire place was crushed to rubble so a new, smaller, hospital could take its place. My old school had a perfectly good early 1920s heritage classroom but the Ministry of Education demanded it be torn down as a condition for funding new rooms.
Governments like to spend money making new things so old things, especially if they’re in perfect working order, need to be smashed.
I study the Bible, and what i am looking at is a world that is almost being directed to a book of Revelation type scenario. Many believe in a pretribulation rapture. i do not. In fact, I think it may be possible that Christs millennial reign has already occurred and what we now face is the end of the ‘short time’ mentioned in the Bible, where the devil was released for one more time, to gather the hordes of Gog & Magog against Israel, not the physical Israel as many think is occurring now, but the spiritual Israel, the spiritual Jerusalem and the bride of the church. True believing Christians that worship Christ led by the Holy SPirit. I am non denominational and do npt attend a church. I came to my faith by reading the Bible myself many years ago, after rejecting it in my teens and exploring other faiths such as eastern mysticism, Islam, Theosophy and others, before finally reading the Bible for myself. I love history and all I am attempting to discover is the true timeline of events. As you know the victors control the past. I have provided a link at the question I am looking at. I dont agree with all of this but it is a route I am exploring.
https://thebridgelifeinthemix.info/history/history-big-lie-understanding-tartaria/
Thanks again.
Dion.
Am familiar with the idea but have yet to see a problem to demand such a big solution. What? They think my great grandfather couldn’t build a bridge?
I don’t think we’re living in the End Times, just the latest Crisis. Resolution thereof will define the culture for the next 80 years (4 generations) and then we’ll have another Crisis.
You may be correct about it not being the end times but if you look at Biblical Eschatology and Prophecy, much is unfolding in this regard, but it could be by design to give this impression. The West is the bastion of Christianity, and I see what is occurring in the west as much the same as what occurred to the Israelites in the OT, time and time again. Our culture has largely rejected Christianity. When we cut ourselves away from the moral anchor that provided a blessing flow, these blessings can no longer flow. Moral decline leads to economic decline and ultimately the destruction of any Empire that once inculcated Christian or Biblical morals. I attempted to prove the Bible wrong once upon a time, but that cuase was futile, and to be honest I didnt like the fact that I had discovered the Bible to be true, it didnt sit well with me. But one cannot deny the truth and keep their integrity intact. Now I am certain of the truth, not only from a historical perspective but from an internal spiritual perspective. History seems full of anomalies that do not add up, not that this is a salvation issue, its a personal interest. I want to make sense of the historical timeline. Its a personal thing, not a spiritual one.
Anyway thank you for replying. You have great site and I agree with what you say about the incorporation by the state. I never knew that about Inveracrgill and the port. Appreciate your work.
All the best for 2024.
Thank you.
DIon.