Timothy Eaton

ReportedJan 2017

Ivor Rhys Lewis · 1919 · Toronto

Photo: Jason Shim (CC BY 2.0), date not established. Existing Street Art Utopia archive photo, credited there to Jason Shim / Wikimedia Commons. Resized, full frame.

Ivor Rhys Lewis’s seated Timothy Eaton statue was donated to Toronto’s Royal Ontario Museum in 1999. Radio Canada describes a tradition of touching the merchant’s extended left toe for luck, polishing it brighter than the rest of the bronze. Source Source Source Reported

Reported at ROM Jan 2017 — evidence dated 2017-01-31. Article publication date, not a camera date or a present-day condition check. Source Reported

💡 4 things to know

Funded by employeesEaton’s employees funded the sculpture to mark the company’s 50th anniversary. Source Checked
One of a pairLewis made matching statues for Toronto and Winnipeg, both unveiled in 1919. Source Checked
A toe-touching traditionRadio Canada reports that thousands touched the extended left toe for luck. Source Reported
Moved to the ROMThe Toronto statue was donated to the Royal Ontario Museum in 1999. Source Checked

📍 Where it is

Royal Ontario Museum, 100 Queen’s Park · Toronto, Canada Source Checked

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🗓️ Sightings

19198 Dec
Toronto statue unveiled at the Eaton store
1977
Moved to the Toronto Eaton Centre
1999
Donated to the Royal Ontario Museum
201731 Jan
Radio Canada reports the Toronto statue at the Royal Ontario Museum

Green stamps mark dated photographs; amber stamps mark records or reports; red stamps mark loss. Publication dates are not camera dates.

✅ The facts

Artist: Ivor Rhys Lewis Source Checked
Unveiled: 8 December 1919 Source Reported
Material: Bronze statue on marble base Source Checked
Subject: Timothy Eaton Source Checked
Visitor ritual: Touching the extended left toe for luck Source Reported
Collection: Royal Ontario Museum Source Checked
Donated to ROM: 1999 Source Checked
Year: 1919 Source Checked

🔗 Related

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Last checked: 29 October 2026. How we verify art