A couple of literary lions get a subtle sprucing up

A pair of famous New York faces recently underwent face-lifts and chin tucks to restore their youthful luster.

The two-week makeover tightened things up on Fortitude and Patience, the twin pink-marble lions positioned outside the New York Public Library for the last 93 years. The lion kings of the urban jungle needed the work after decades of pigeon droppings, winter weather and climbing kids.

On Thursday, library President Paul LeClerc unveiled the spruced-up figures by yanking a bright blue plastic tarp off each lion, which had been caged in steel scaffolding during the project.

“Don’t they look gorgeous?” said LeClerc, as some 50 schoolchildren, passers-by and library staff looked on. “We have taken care of the treasures of the library.”

The two aristocratic-appearing lions with intriguing Mona Lisa-esque smiles were named Fortitude (on the north) and Patience (on the south) by New York Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia during the Depression. LaGuardia was urging New Yorkers to adopt those attributes in toughing out the hard times.

The 30-foot-by-20-foot lions are in sound condition after all those years.

“You can see horizontal and diagonal hair-thin stripes in the stone, showing that they were slowly eroding,” said renowned sculpture conservator John Griswold. “They are in pretty good shape for living out in the elements and pollution and being climbed on for nine decades.”

Passersby will probably not notice much difference in the lions. They will look cleaner and fresher with only subtle differences, said Griswold.

The lions were designed in 1911 by Edward Clark Potter and carved by the Piccirilli Brothers out of Tennessee Pink Marble, stone from an ancient seabed that was popular in monuments of the day, such as the Lincoln Memorial, New York’s Grand Central Station and the New York Public Library.

They sit on large stone blocks elevated above eye level, imparting a feeling of independence yet rendering the friendly air of pussycats rather than ferocious beasts.

“I’ve been climbing all around these lions for six months and to my eye, they look very different -- you can even detect the pink in their cheeks,” architect Robert Bates said of the subtle pink tone to the white stone lion.

The sculptures are one of the most visited sights for tourists -- especially at Christmastime when they proudly sit in the cold, adorned in collars of holly. They were originally nicknamed Leo Astor and Leo Lenox for two wealthy founders of the library, John Jacob Astor and James Lenox.

The conservation of the lions is the first step toward a full restoration of the exterior of the library’s landmark building on Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street for its 100th birthday, in 2011, LeClerc said.

“These lions have such enormous symbolism all over the world,” he said. “They represent serenity, strength and wisdom. They have been humanized, which makes them quite lovable.”