Stevenage Sculpture Trail

Cycle your way round the town

By Pauline Maryan

A few years ago, Stevenage Museum ran a Sculpture Trail for cyclists, with an accompanying quiz.

If you would like to have a go at following the route and answering the questions, the answers are still available at the Museum.

The map on this page shows the locations of most of the sculptures in the Topics section of our website. If you click on the link to the individual pages, you will find pictures and more information on the sculptors.

Please let us know via the website if you find anything has changed.  Better still, add your own photographs of any sculptures we may have missed!

Start at Stevenage Museum in St George’s Way.

1. Outside is “An Urban Elephant” by Andrew Burton

Question 1.  What year was this sculpted?

Now go up the ramp and turn left on to St George’s Way for a short ride to the roundabout.  Join the underpass and turn right.  At a pedestrian crossing with ASDA on your left, you will find:

2.  “Millennium Milepost”

Question 2.  How many miles to Letchworth?

You will need to walk your bike through the town centre to find sculptures 3 – 8.

3.  “Seated Figures” by David Noble

If you peer over the top of the fence by The Towers into the private garden, you can just glimpse this group of figures.

Question 3.  How many figures are seated?

Continue walking straight ahead into the town centre until you reach the Town Square.  On the clock tower you will find:

4.  “Lewis Silkin” by Franta Belsky

Question 4.  What year did Lewis Silkin die?

With your back to Boots, the next sculpture is on the raised platform straight ahead.

5.  “Joyride” by Franta Belsky

Question 5.  Upon which building does this sculpture unceremoniously now stand?

Facing the bus station, turn right and look up to find:

6.  “Wall sculpture” by Peter Lyon

Question 6.  On the wall of which popular fast food chain is the sculpture hanging?

Now double back to Boots and turn left to continue into the shopping area, past Marks & Spencer’s, until you reach:

7.  “Sundial” by David Harber

Question 7.  Who commissioned the Sundial?

Turn right past Next towards the car park:

8.  “Nameless Abstract” by Jose De Alberdi

Question 8.  What is this sculpture made of?

You are now leaving the town centre and need to go left and left again, past TKMaxx and under the underpass.  Now turn left, and then past Pets at Home turn right into Ditchmore Lane to find the park on your right.  Here you will find:

9.  “Friendship and Peace” by Dennis Heath

Question 9.  What is missing from the dove’s head?

Turn back on yourself towards the blue bridge.  Turn right and follow the cycle path.  When you can go no further, turn right and follow the cycle path until you cross the Bridge Road roundabout.  You’ll see these sculptures on your left.

10.  “Robot Family”

Question 10.  What (three identical digit) house number stands facing the Robots?

Return to the cycleway and continue until you reach the roundabout junction with the A602 to Hitchin.  Turn left past the Fire and Rescue Centre and John Henry Newman School.  At the next roundabout turn right to take you past the Lister hospital (this will be on a road).  At the mini roundabout turn right, then left into Rectory Lane.  At the top of the Lane as the road turns sharply right, you will see St Nicholas Church on your left.

The next sculpture is a tricky one to find.  Go through the lychgate, and take the footpath ahead, past the church. Just before the big Barclay monument in the old part, there’s a footpath running to the left down towards a kissing gate.  The fields beyond are the countryside which inspired E.M. Forster’s writing, and are known as Forster Country.   In the trees beside the gate you will find:

11.  “Only Connect” by Angela Godfrey

Question 11.  What two words have been taken from the subtitle of E.M.Forster’s novel “Howards End”?

Back at the lychgate, with your back to the church turn left into Almonds Lane and go past the cemetery.  Follow the track on the left that will take you under Grace Way.  Turn left, then left again into Lonsdale Road.  The second turning on the right is Archer Road.  Follow the road round and you will find the local shops on your left.

12.  “King Pin” by Agnes Grey

Question 12.  In which pub’s seating area does this sculpture stand?

Double back on yourself to the garage that you passed as you turned into Lonsdale Road.  Turn left then right under the underpass to get to Fairlands Valley Park.  By the car park and the maze you will see:

13.  “Totem poles” by Dennis Heath

Question 13.  Which animal on the right totem pole is the only one to be found in trees?

With your back to the car park and facing into the park you will see Fairlands Farmhouse ahead to your right. looking over the wall you can see:

14.  Two Swans by Dennis Heath

Question 14.  Another totem pole stands near the Swans.  Can you find it?  What is the carving at the top?

Take the winding path to your left across the park until you reach the doctors’ surgery. Turn right and follow the road until you reach the Glebe shops.  behind them you will find:

15.  “Polar Bear” by Mark Harvey

Question 15.  Pupils from which primary school nearby can keep an eye on him?

This area was used in the filming of “Here we go round the mulberry bush” in 1967.

With your back to the shops, turn left and take the next left turn into Eliot Road.  Opposite the second turning into Bernhardt Crescent you will see a pathway.  Follow this to find:

16.  “Three Geese” by David Noble

Question 16.  Stevenage often uses particular themes for its road names. What is the theme of the road names in this part of Chells?

Continue down the path until you reach Ferrier Road.  Turn right and then at the end of the road turn left to meet Six Hills Way.  Turn right at the roundabout and follow the cycle path down to the fourth turning on your right into Homestead Moat.  At the end of the road turn left into Cuttys Lane.  At the bottom, opposite the Church and Museum are the Town Centre Gardens.  At the far end of the pond you will find:

17.  “Women and Doves” by David Norris

Question 17.  How many birds are being held by the women?

Behind you you will find:

18.  Underpass reliefs

Question 18. The Market Place carvings are abstract but what do the Park Place carvings by William Mitchell depict?

YOU HAVE COME TO THE END OF THE TRAIL.  NOW RETURN TO THE MUSEUM WITH YOUR ANSWER SHEETS

© Stevenage Museum

This page was added on 06/12/2011.

Add your comment about this page

Your email address will not be published.

  • Yes, this is available at the Museum as a leaflet that can be downloaded, although it is still “work in progress”. I tried to email a copy to you but it failed to reach you.

    By Pauline Maryan (20/11/2012)
  • Is this trail available as a leaflet? Or a pdf file that can be easily printed off and carried arround.

    By Margaret Selby (08/11/2012)