Added to the University of Cincinnati’s campus back in 1904, these lions have long since been staples of the University’s image. The lions are actually replicas of a pair of lions in Loggia dei Lanzi in Florence, Italy. They were commissioned by Jacob Hoffner, a wealthy traveler who wanted the gardens of Cincinnati to have replicas of these famous lions. After his death in 1894, he left them to his wife, Maria Hoffner, and they were given to the city upon her passing. At the time, UC was a municipal university and thus the lions found their current resting place

Information found on UC’s website