The Character Statues

Magnus Troil

Found on the upper tier of the south-west buttress of the Scott Monument.

Magnus Troil (from the novel 'The Pirate', 1821), is represented in a loose woollen coat, soft cap and sword.

Father of Minna and Brenda, Magnus is, unusually for a 17th-century Shetland landowner, descended from "an old and noble Norwegian family", whereas most of the other island lairds are of Scottish extraction. This circumstance "rendered him dearer to the lower orders, most of whom are of the same race".

"He was an honest, plain Zetland gentleman, somewhat passionate…and somewhat over-convivial in his habits, the consequence, perhaps, of having too much time at his disposal; but frank-tempered and generous to his people, and kind and hospitable to strangers."

About the Sculptor

Mrs Amelia Robertson Paton (Mrs D.O. Hill), 1820 to 1904

Amelia Robertson Paton was a sculptress whose most notable work was the statue of Dr. Livingstone, the missionary explorer, which stands next to the Scott Monument (1869).

Other works include: The head and crown from the king’s tomb at Fontainebleu; a bust of ‘John Fergus M.P.’ (1861) in Kirkcaldy Town Hall; ‘Countess of Elgin and Kincardine' (1864); ‘James Wemyss of Wemyss M.P.', Fife County Hall (1866); ‘Sir George Harvey, President of the R.S.A.' (1867); ‘Thomas Carlyle’ (1867); ‘Sir Joseph Noel Paton’, her brother; and a bronze bust of her husband - 'David Octavius Hill' (1886), Dean Cemetery, Edinburgh .

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