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Equestrian statue o the Duke o Wellington, Glesga

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The statue haes become weel ken fur haein traffic cones pit on its heid

The equestrian statue o Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke o Wellington locatit ootside the Ryal Exchange, kent the noo as the Gallery of Modern Art, Glasgow, Scotland, is ane o Glesga's maist weel kent laundmairks.

It wis sculpit bi Italian airtist Carlo Marochetti an pit up in 1844, owin tae public subscrievins tae mairk the successfu end in 1815 o the lang French Revolutionary Wars an the Napoleonic Wars. Sin the 1980s at the aerliest it haes been traditeionally toppit wi ae traffic cone b memmers o the public. The statue is a Category A leetit sculptur.

Traffic cone

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In recent times the statue haes become weel kent fur wearin ae traffic cone. The act wis claimt tae represent the humour o the local fowk an wis thocht tae date back tae the 1980s,[1][2] gin nae afore.

In 2005, Glesga City Cooncil an Strathclyde Polis speirt public nae tae replace the cone, citin minor hairm tae the statue an the potential fur injury whan tryin tae pit ae cone on.[2]

In 2011 the Lonely Planet guide includit the statue in its list o the "top 10 most bizarre monuments on Earth".

In 2013 Glesga City Cooncil pit forrit plans for a £65,000 restoration projeck, that includit ae proposal tae double the heicht o its plinth an raise it tae mair nor sax fit in heicht tae "deter all but the most determined of vandals".[3] Their planning application containt an estimate that the cost o remuivin traffic cones fae the statue wis £100 per calloot, an that this cud amoont tae £10,000 ae year. The plans wis widrawn efter widespreid public opposition, includin an onwab petition that received ower 10,000 signatures. As the council indicatit that acts agin the practice cud still be considert, National Collective organised ae rally fendin the cone.

A gowd pentit cone wis pit on the statue durin the 2012 Olympics as a celebration o Scotland's contreibution tae the record haul o gowd medals won by Team GB.[4] A replica o the statue, that haed the statue cone, wis pairt o the 2014 Commonweal Gemms opening ceremony,[5] an a gold cone wis pit on the statue again tae mairk the success o the gemms.[6]

In 2015, Glesga City Cooncil testit hi-tech CCTV saftware worth £1.2m, tae see gin it cud automatically detect fowk pittin cones on the statue, whilk it could.

On Brexit Day (31 Januar 2020) pro-European supporters pit ae cone pentit tae represent the EU banner on the statue's heid.[7]

In Mairch 2022, in support o Ukraine an as a protest conter tae Russia's invasion of it, the statue wis fittit wi ae cone wi the colours o the Ukrainian banner.[8]

References

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  1. ↑ "Hat's not on, says lord provost". BBC News. 2 August 2000. Retrieved 23 Januar 2022.
  2. 1 2 "Historian unamused by city's joke about the duke". The Herald. 25 Januar 2005. Retrieved 9 Februar 2022.
  3. ↑ Hall, John (12 November 2013). "'An iconic part of local heritage': Glasgow Council drops £65,000 plans to raise Duke of Wellington statue that regularly has traffic cones placed on its head". The Independent. Retrieved 9 Februar 2022.
  4. ↑ "Duke of Wellington is awarded gold in honour of Scotland's success at the Olympics". Daily Record (in Inglis). 10 August 2012. Retrieved 23 Februar 2022.
  5. ↑ McDonald, Gillian (16 Mairch 2017). "Why Glasgow's Duke of Wellington statue was allowed to keep his cone". i. Retrieved 23 Januar 2022.
  6. ↑ "Glasgow, Scotland, UK. 31st July, 2014". Alamy (in Inglis). Retrieved 23 Februar 2022. In celebration of the success of the Commonwealth Games, the regular and iconic red and white traffic cone on the head of the Duke of Wellington statue (normally put there as a student prank) has been replaced by one painted gold. The statue, with a traffic cone on top, outside the Gallery of Modern Art in Royal Exchange Square has been used as an example of Glaswegian humour and is a continuing interest to tourists and locals alike.
  7. ↑ "Scottish statue given pro-European makeover for Brexit Day". The National (in Inglis). Retrieved 23 Februar 2022.
  8. ↑ "Glasgow's Duke of Wellington statue gets new Ukrainian themed traffic cone". Glasgow Live. 7 Mairch 2022.
  9. McCloskey, Katy (29 September 2011). "Scottish sights among world's best". The Herald. Glasgow. Retrieved 5 December 2018.
  10. Leadbetter, Russell (12 December 2019). "Those were the days – the Duke of Wellington statue, 1950 and 1959 (NB: no cone)". The Herald. Glasgow. Retrieved 12 August 2020.
  11. "QUEEN STREET DUKE OF WELLINGTON STATUE (LB32823)". portal.historicenvironment.scot. Historic Environment Scotland. Retrieved 29 September 2019.
  12. Todd, Stephanie (16 Februar 2005). "Council in road cone statue plea". BBC News.
  13. Farrell, Mike (11 November 2013). "Glasgow's iconic 'cone head' statue could be raised to stop vandals". STV News. Archived frae the original on 3 Mairch 2016.
  14. McFadyen, Siobhan (12 November 2013). "Cone Man the Bavarian". glasgow.stv.tv. STV News. Archived frae the original on 13 November 2013.
  15. "Plans to end cone tradition on Glasgow's Wellington statue 'to be withdrawn'". BBC News. 11 November 2013. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
  16. "Doubt remains over Glasgow Wellington 'cone hat' statue". 12 November 2013. Retrieved 12 November 2013.
  17. "Glasgow rallies to save Wellington Cone". 12 November 2013. Archived frae the original on 7 November 2020. Retrieved 12 November 2013.
  18. "New city surveillance system sparks call for urgent law change". The Ferret. 5 November 2015. Retrieved 17 Mairch 2016.

Forder reading

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