Victoria Art Gallery, Bath

The Victoria Art Gallery was opened in 1897 to mark Victoria's Diamond Jubilee.
I was interested in the inscription below the statue of the queen:
"Erected in loyalty and love by the women of Bath 1901" and thought I might be able to find out who these women were. No luck so far. 
It would have to be wealthy middle and upper class ladies naturally. Still, it's unusual, I think, for it to be women behind this adornment of the entrance.