Construction on Paladin Plaza to begin in May

Move over Bell Tower, rose garden gazebo and Putto. Make room for a new Furman landmark.

This May, work will begin on Sir Paladin and steed, a 17-foot cast bronze Paladin and horse that will dominate the entrance to the football stadium.

The outdoor statue will be the centerpiece of a new Paladin Plaza. Paladin Club President Ken Pettus says the plaza, which will also include a brick walkway and landscaping, will be located in the shady area in front of the stadium entrance. The sculpture, he says, is sure to join the Bell Tower, Milford Mall, the gazebo and Cherrydale on every visiting photographer's must-see list.

"As the Bell Tower is symbolic of academic life at Furman, this plaza will be the focal point of athletics at Furman," says Pettus. "It's going to be phenomenal."

The project, which will cost approximately $500,000, should be completed by mid-summer. The outdoor sculpture will be the fourth donated to Furman by Irwin Belk of Charlotte, N.C. Belk, a former North Carolina state legislator and son of the Belk department store founder, William Henry Belk, sponsored Inspiration, an abstract steel structure next to the Thomas Anderson Roe Art Building. Belk also donated the statue of Richard Furman at Cherrydale and Aquarii, the centerpiece of the Hipp Hall brick patio.

Sonny and Keeter Horton of Greenville and Melvin and Dollie Younts of Fountain Inn are the primary donors for Paladin Plaza. Chris Stewart and Marty Priore, 2002 Furman graduates who were All-American offensive linemen for the Paladins last year and who are now in the granite business in Odessa, Fla., have donated the granite for the statue's pedestal.

Sir Paladin and steed will be mounted on a five-foot pedestal. John Hair, an artist from Cornelius, N.C., is completing the work. Hair has also completed mascot sculptures for Elon University, UNC-Greensboro, UNC-Wilmington and Virginia Commonwealth University.

The names of athletic donors who have created fully endowed scholarships will be engraved into the pedestal. In addition, the names of the Order of the Paladin members (those who contribute at the quarter-, half-, or full-scholarship levels) will be engraved on a plaque attached to Paladin Stadium.