A Tribute to Princess Diana

We are so excited that the new statue of Princess Diana, commissioned by her sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, to commemorate what would have been her 60^th birthday, is to reside in her favourite spot in the Sunken Garden at Kensington Palace, between two planters handmade by Chilstone!

A Statue to commemorate Diana’s Legacy

The statue of Princess Diana was commissioned in 2017 by her sons, Prince William and Prince Harry on the 20^th anniversary of her death. Diana sadly died in 1997 in a car crash in Paris.  The statue was unveiled on what would have been her 60^th birthday on 1^st July 2021. The statue is to reside in what was Diana’s favourite spot in the Sunken Gardens at Kensington Palace, where Diana lived after her wedding in 1981 until she died. It was where her sons, Prince William and Harry grew up and is still the official residence for Prince William and his family. The statue is “to mark her positive impact in the UK and around the world.”

Chilstone’s Kensington Planters in pairs to define the dutch-style garden design at Kensington Palace.

Royal Commission

The statue has been made by Ian Rank-Broadley. The bronze statue has a verdigris finish. Ian Rank-Broadly has worked with the royal family before and his effigy of Queen Elizabeth II has appeared on all UK and Commonwealth coinage since 1998. He has also created coinage featuring Prince Charles and the Queen Mother.

Ian Rank-Broadley has made the effigy of our Queen for the coins in the UK and Commonwealth since 1998.

Ian Rank-Broadley is a hugely talented sculptor and has created some striking work over the years, including the famous Armed Forces Memorial.

The Army Memorial shows off the huge talent of Ian Rank-Broadley.

Sunken Garden

The Sunken Garden at Kensington Palace is open to the public. It was originally designed in 1908, inspired by the Pond Garden at Hampton Court, the once pleasure palace of Henry VIII. The Pond Gardens were originally fish ponds for Henry VIII, but they were transformed in 1690’s by Mary II  to display her rare and exotic plant collections. It used hedging to separate the space into richly planted beds.

This Sunken Garden is based on a formal Dutch-style with topiary, large water feature, matching planters and beds planted with tulips and summer annuals.

The Sunken Garden was Princess Diana’s favourite place at Kensington Palace.

It was redesigned after Diana’s death as a quiet place to reflect on her life in a place she loved. The garden was replanted with white flowers in 2017 to remember Diana, 20 years after her death, to represent the white dress Diana wore in a photo shoot with Mario Testino, which was one of the happiest days Diana could remember and created iconic pictures of the ‘People’s Princess’.

Princess Diana Photographed by the talented Mario Testino

A Chilstone Royal Commission

When the gardens were redeveloped in Diana’s memory, Chilstone were commissioned by Kensington Palace to produce twenty small planters to replicate the crumbling,  larger planters already in the gardens. Chilstone handcrafted and supplied the cast stone planters, as part of updated garden design and palace refurbishment.

The Sunken Garden at Kensington Palace contains 20 bespoke Chilstone planters made by hand,

“We were delighted with the original commission, and it is amazing that our craftsmanship will flank the statute of the beloved ‘People’s Princess’ in such a beautiful memorial garden.”

Steve Clark, Chilstone General Manager.

Steve Clark, Chilstone General Manger.

Bespoke

Chilstone started almost 70 years ago on the day of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. Over the past seven decades we have created bespoke garden ornaments and architectural stone for a wide range of clients with gardens and properties of all shapes and sizes. Although we have worked with giants, such as Hever Castle and Kew Gardens, we also supply smaller items, like birdbaths for loved ones, that can be engraved to make them extra special.

Chilstone restored the finials that adorn the Temperate House at Kew Gardens.

Statues

Chilstone also make a wide range of statues . Our cast stone statues feature in some wonderful gardens across the world and even feature in a Disney film set.

Chilstone Mythical Beast statue, bought by Disney for a film set.

Long Lasting

Chilstone products are lasting statement pieces, suitable for gardens of all sizes. Our cast stone can be engraved, coloured or antiqued to fit your garden design. We ship our products around the world. Our Kensington planters are available to purchase and look fantastic in pairs.

Chilstone started on the day of the Queen’s coronation and have won multiple awards at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show over the years.

Chilstone stand at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, where we have won many awards over the years.

Visit Us By Appointment

Chilstone have made stonework for many clients including Hever Castle, Kew Gardens and Kensington Palace. We are happy to help customers with all enquires for projects of all sizes. Our show gardens are open by appointment. Call us 01892 7406866 or email office@chilstone.com

All our cast stone is made by hand as it has been for seven decades.