MERMAID PANEL DAMAGED

In the 1950s Portmeirion architect Clough Williams-Ellis purchased a set of mermaid railings from the Liverpool Sailors Home. Several were used in Portmeirion itself , and one was used for the entrance to a small shop in Pont Street, London where it became the first HQ for Portmeirion Pottery in 1960 (although the connection to Portmeirion has long since been broken.)

News has reached The Unmutual via expert Steve Mckay (whose first part of The History of the Liverpool Sailors' Home is available in the 2013 Journal of the Liverpool History Society) that this panel (left) has been damaged by the current owners, who have decided to drill holes through it and attach a cigarette "butt box" to it.

The current owners of the property have been contacted about the "vandalism" but are yet to comment.

UPDATE MAY 23RD 2013: Thanks to Unmutual Website reader Andy Frith, we can confirm that "the power of the press" is not a myth, and that the butt box has now been removed from the gate:

Copies of the "Liverpool History Society Journal" containing Steve's research are now available throughout Liverpool and online for £5.99:

With thanks to Steve Mckay and Andrew Frith for this news item and image (c) Steve Mckay, 2nd image (c) Andrew Frith.

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