ONE of the most famous pieces of public art in the city is to be taken down and restored to his former glory.
A sculptured cast iron black horse known as Trigger had taken pride of place in the central reservation of junction six of the ring road.
It was designed and produced by Lanchester Polytechnic/Coventry University Arts student Simon Evans in the mid-1980s.
But Trigger has been removed to undergo some extensive repairs and restoration while work continues on the new bridge from Friargate to the city centre.
The restoration will be carried out by specialists at Telford-based Eura Conservation.
Two weeks ago we reported how the historic Joseph Levi Memorial Clock was removed from Stoke Park two years ago when work began on the new playground there, but has never been repaired and returned by the city council which is its custodians.
But development director Colin Knight insisted that would not be the case with Trigger.
“We can allay everyone’s fears and say that Trigger will be safely and carefully removed, placed into the hands of experts who will look after him, repair him and hand him back to us looking as good as new,” Mr Knight added.
“It was never our intention to take him down to be left in storage somewhere, and certainly never to scrap him.
“But he would have needed to be removed for the work to continue and it presents us with the ideal opportunity to make some extensive and very much needed repairs as he is sadly in quite a bad way.
“When the bridge deck is completed he will be re-sited on a landscaped area nearby the new junction where he will provide a nod to the past heritage of the ring road as he overlooks the new layout.”
