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Secondary sourceSculpture1914

Statue of Captain James Cook, The Mall

Thomas Brock · 1914

Thomas Brock's 1914 bronze statue of Cook near Admiralty Arch in London, marking his place in imperial memory.

This statue commemorates Cook as a symbol of British imperial achievement in the early 20th century.

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Bronze statue of a standing man in an eighteenth-century naval captain's uniform and tricorn hat, holding a rolled paper, on a tall grey stone pedestal with a ship's rope and cannonball carving, in front of a red brick and stone building.
Thomas Brock, Statue of Captain James Cook, The Mall, London, 1914.

About this source

What it is

This bronze statue of James Cook, by sculptor Thomas Brock, stands on The Mall near Admiralty Arch in London. It was completed and unveiled in 1914, after the idea was proposed by Joseph Carruthers, a former premier of New South Wales who noted London lacked a monument to Cook.

Why it matters

The statue shows how, by the early twentieth century, Cook had become a symbol of British imperial achievement, with colonial figures like Carruthers pushing for his recognition in the heart of the empire.

Look closer

  • Why might someone from Australia want a statue of Cook built in London?
  • What does Cook's pose and uniform suggest about how he was meant to be remembered?
  • What is left out of a statue that a letter or diary might tell us?

This sculpture is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of James Cook on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Oval engraved portrait of Captain James Cook in a naval-style uniform with a high collar and cravat, hair curled at the sides, set within a decorative oval frame. Caption below reads 'Captain James Cook, F.R.S.' with publication credits along the bottom margin.Painting

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Sketchings of the 1769 Venus Transit

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James Cook, engraving by Rivers after Dance-Holland

Nathaniel Dance-Holland · 1776

Engraved sea chart titled 'Chart of New Zealand, explored in 1769 and 1770' by Lieut. J. Cook, Commander of His Majesty's Bark Endeavour. Shows North and South Islands with coastal names, soundings, compass roses, and a rhumb-line grid. Title and an explanation box appear at top.Document

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Chart of New Zealand, explored in 1769 and 1770

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