Still screened by protective glass, the battered statue of slave trader Edward Colston is housed in a museum store room next to steam engine components, old chocolate wrappers, and many other antiques.
Bronze sculpture showing red and blue murals black lives matter Protests in June 2020 when Bristol was torn from its chair in the city centre, rolled into the streets and thrown into the harbour.
Visitors to the museum can view the statue, but only once a day by booking the place on a behind-the-scenes tour. Those expecting commentary on the controversial effigy will be disappointed.
Still screened by protective glass, the battered statue of slave trader Edward Colston is housed in a museum store room next to steam engine components, old chocolate wrappers, and many other antiques.
A bronze sculpture holds red and blue graffiti from a Black Lives Matter protest in June 2020, when it was torn from its plinth in Bristol city centre, rolled through the streets and dumped in the harbour
A volunteer guide who organized a tour last week admitted: ‘I’ve been given a long list of things I can and can’t say, so I’m not going to say anything.’
Staff at the M Shed Museum, which celebrates Bristol’s history, removed the statue from general view last week – a decision that, according to the museum, was in line with a visitor survey.
It was held in the nearby El Shed store room a few days before being cleared by a jury for criminal damages to four activists seen on CCTV looping ropes around the monument.
Attorney General Suella Braverman is considering acquittal in the Court of Appeals amid claims that the verdict created a ‘barbaric’ charter.
The ‘Kolston Four’ – Sage Willoughby, Ryan Graham, Milo Ponsford and Jake Skuse – are believed to have received legal aid to fund at least part of their defence.
A GoFundMe page for the ‘Bristol Topplers’ Defense Fund asked for donations for ‘legal fees not covered by legal aid’ and raised £13,500.
Museum visitors can view the statue, but only by booking a spot on a one-day behind-the-scenes tour.
Colston, a 17th-century merchant, enslaved the fortune trade, but donated so much money to philanthropic causes in Bristol that his name appeared in streets, schools and a concert hall throughout the city.
The government wants to increase the maximum punishment for damage to monuments or statues from three months to ten years, but experts fear it could lead to more acquittals.
Human rights barrister Adam Wagner said: ‘The change is an open invitation for ten times more Colston-type trials.
‘All cases of damage to public monuments will be before the jury in Crown Court as the sentence will be increased to ten years, so we will look into it further.’