[CPProt.net] UK: Raiders of the lost scarab

[MSN CPPnet (Ton Cremers)]

Raiders of the lost scarab

08 December 2005 
 
Bronze dung beetle photo: http://snipurl.com/km4r  

The hunt is on to find a giant bronze dung beetle which was has been stolen.

The bronze sculpture is nearly three feet long and weighs 7 stone – roughly
the same as a large dog.

But despite this, the thieves managed to get it over a 15ft high brick wall
and make off undetected.

The burglars struck in the middle of the night on Thursday, December 1 to
take the creature from inside the foundry in Island Row, Limehouse.

The artist, Wendy Taylor CBE, from Bow, is extremely distraught at the loss,
she said: “I’m absolutely furious, this was a real labour of love.”

Wendy, a renowned artist, also made the beetles and dung ball that reside
outside the Millennium conservation building at London Zoo from the same
cast.

This sculpture was unveiled by the Queen and Prince Philip in 2000.

“I’m totally bemused, there were plenty of other things in the foundry that
could have been taken and sold off more easily.

“In terms of scrap metal, bronze is hardly worth anything.”

Wendy is also having trouble with understanding how the thieves stole the
sculpture.

“The beetle is so awkward to carry, especially for chaps. I’ve had to warn
people about carrying it before to be careful of their bits.

“The legs stick out and the underside is very intricate – it’s a very exact
replica of a dung beetle.”

She fears the beetle, which has become somewhat iconic, has been stolen to
order, “The last time one of these sold it went for £9,500.”

The bug was also used to promote the Hugh Grant Film, About A Boy.

The stolen beetle is part of a set of three, one placed on its back with the
other two looking on.

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