re: #762 Varek Raith

DAMN TEENAGERS!

The statue stands outside the Gallery of Modern Art, sometimes referred to as GoMA.

The traffic cone is not Photoshoped on (although the photo has been covered to black and white, with the cone kept red to make it stand out more. It is permanently on the Duke’s head and for many years the authorities regularly removed cones, only for them to be replaced (usually the following night) by someone climbing the nearly 20 foot statue. This statue and his traffic cone has come to represent (particularly in tourist guidebooks) the city’s light-hearted attitude to authority, and the city authorities no longer remove Wellington’s cone hat.

lol