13-05-2025
First historic statue removed from George square today
All 11 statues will be taken down and put into storage for cleaning and restoration work during the redevelopment of the square.
When the work is complete, they will be returned to the square.
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Today, workers carefully removed the Robert Burns statue from its plinth in the square.
(Image: Colin Mearns)
The other statues, including the horseback monuments of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, will be taken down over the next 10 days.
The Walter Scott Monument in the centre of the square and the Cenotaph will remain in place throughout the works.
The square has now been closed off with hoardings erected to allow workers to start the redevelopment.
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After being lifted from the plinths, the statue of Scotland's national poet was wrapped in blankets for protection and later wrapped in an opaque black plastic and placed on a low-loader truck before being transported to storage.
(Image: Colin Mearns)
The statues will be removed and restored by Rupert Harris Conservation, a leading company in the field of statue and metalwork conservation.
The George Square and surrounding Avenues project is part of the wider Avenues programme, aimed at making the city centre more attractive, greener and better connected.
(Image: Colin Mearns)
The statues conservation work sits alongside the main contract for George Square and the surrounding Avenues, with the main contract - worth £20.499million - supported by £8.815million Glasgow City Deal City Region funding from both the Scottish and UK Governments.
Work on the main contract is expected to begin in the coming weeks.
