Statue of James Cook (Victoria, British Columbia)
| Statue of James Cook | |
|---|---|
 The statue in 2018 | |
| Artist | Derek and Patricia Freeborn, after John Tweed |
| Year | 1976 (after an original of 1912) |
| Medium | Fibreglass |
| Location | Victoria, British Columbia, Canada |
A statue of James Cook stood in Victoria, British Columbia, from 1976 to 2021. It was a fibreglass[1] copy of a bronze statue of 1912 by John Tweed in Whitby, Yorkshire, England.[2] The Victoria Environmental Enhancement Foundation commissioned the work from Derek and Patricia Freeborn[3] to mark the 200th anniversary of Cook's departure on his third voyage in 1776. The statue was unveiled on July 12, 1976, by William Richards Bennett, Premier of British Columbia. It stood on the Causeway, facing the Fairmont Empress hotel, with its back to the Inner Harbour.[1]
The statue was daubed with red paint in August 2020. On the night of July 1 (Canada Day), 2021, it was broken at the knee and ankle and thrown in the Inner Harbour;[4] its pedestal was covered in red handprints. A makeshift statue of a red dress, commemorating "disappeared" and assassinated Aboriginal women, was put up in its place.[5] The following morning a totem pole in Malahat (30km away) was set on fire, apparently in retaliation for the toppling of the statue.[4]
See also[]
- Statue of James Cook (Anchorage, Alaska) – another replica of Tweed's statue by the Freeborns, erected the same year
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Inner Harbour, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada". Captain Cook Society. Retrieved August 26, 2021.
- ^ "West Cliff, Whitby, North Yorkshire, England, UK". Captain Cook Society. Retrieved August 26, 2021.
- ^ "Captain James Cook". LandMarks Public Art. Capital Regional District. Retrieved August 26, 2021.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Dickson, Courtney (July 2, 2021). "Protesters toss statue of explorer James Cook into Victoria harbour; totem pole later burned". CBC News. Retrieved July 3, 2021.
- ^ Lambert, Steve (July 2, 2021). "Fête du Canada: Des statues renversées par des manifestants dans plusieurs villes". La Presse (in French). Canadian Press. Retrieved July 3, 2021.
External links[]
Media related to Captain Cook Memorial (Victoria, British Columbia) at Wikimedia Commons
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- Monuments and memorials in British Columbia
- Monuments and memorials to James Cook
- Removed statues
- Sculptures of men in Canada
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