Horniman Circle Mascarons

The Fort area in Mumbai is the city’s main business district. Historically, it was the core of the city and it was here that the city was born in its modern form. Today, the area of Fort is full of fascinating old heritage buildings which house the offices of several government departments, banks, businesses and other establishments.

In the heart of Fort, there is a circular garden. Surrounding the garden are four curved heritage buildings. This area is called Horniman Circle. Once upon a time, the place was a large, open piece of land and was called Bombay Green. It was used for storing and trading cotton and other merchandise.

Eventually, the area was redeveloped and the circular garden was planned in 1869 and completed in 1872. The place was initially called Elphinstone Circle after the erstwhile Governor John Elphinstone. Later, the area was renamed as Horniman Circle after B. G. Horniman, the editor of The Bombay Chronicle newspaper.

The four curved buildings have distinctive arcades and covered walkways lined with arches. On the keystones of the arches, there are decorative stone faces. Such keystone faces are called mascarons. They are ornamental stone faces which are used to decorate buildings.

These mascarons add a unique flavor to these heritage buildings and are definitely worth a few pictures and a moment of admiration.