Meet Aristotle celebrated in stone as one of William Gladstone’s inspirations. The others were Augustine as theologian, Dante as literary figure and Joseph Butler as churchman, but Aristotle is the first to greet the visitor as he is nearest to the entrance to the grounds of Gladstone’s Hawarden residence in Flintshire, Wales. The four statues decorate the outside walls of the library, which is open to the public and contains more than a quarter of a million items. Gladstone founded it to house his personal library and make it publicly available in 1894. The sculptor is sadly unknown. There are several other statues inside the library and in the gardens, including a personification of Sophia, ‘Wisdom’ and of course of Gladstone himself.