The east entrance to the Royal Ontario Museum is majestically guarded by two stone lions. To the north is a male lion, with his right paw stepping on a ball; to the south is a female lion, with her left paw playing with the little lion lying on his back. Each stone lion weighs 17 tons and is about 3 meters high. There is an extraordinary story behind the seemingly calm appearance.
This pair of stone lions came from Prince Su's Mansion in Beijing. When the Eight-Power Allied Forces invaded China in 1900, they were targeted by Italian soldiers. However, they were too heavy and had to be moved onto a flatbed trolley. The trolley fell apart after just two steps, so the soldiers gave up. Then the pair of stone lions were dragged by the Austrian army to the garden of the Austrian Embassy. In 1921, George Crofts, a British fur trader, was entrusted by the Royal Ontario Museum in Canada to go to China to search for cultural relics. He wrote to the curator Mr. Currelly and suggested buying the pair of stone lions. With the consent, Crofts quickly reached an agreement with the Austrian Embassy and bought the pair of stone lions in 1922.
It is easy to buy but not easy to transport. In addition to tying them up and moving it bit by bit onto a flatbed trolley, he also spent a huge price of 150 silver dollars per kilometer to transport the lion to the train station. At that time, everyone ran to the street to watch the excitement. There are history photos about that event. The stone lions were transported to the port by train, and before being shipped to New York by sea, he spent half a year building two large boxes. During the sea journey, they had to be moved to another ship, which was another hassle. They were finally transported by train from New York to Toronto in 1923.
They were first placed in CNE (Canadian National Exhibition Hall), and later moved to the north entrance of the Royal Ontario Museum. However, museum felt that it would be a pity to leave such precious things outdoor to be exposed to the sun and rain, so they broke the wall of the museum and moved the lions in. After the museum was expanded in 1932, the stone lions remained in the north garden, and it was not moved to its current location until the renovation in 2005. This pair of stone lions wouldn’t make people worry less after they were placed outdoors. In winter, they must be wrapped in a special protective cover to prevent them from being corroded by ice, snow and coarse salt. In summer, museum have to put on a shelf to clean them. It’s really not easy to own a pair of stone lions!
So next time when you pass by, don’t miss the opportunity of taking a photo with them!