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LAST UPDATE | 51 mins ago
THE GIANT STATUE of St Patrick raising a pint outside Dublin’s Temple Bar Pub has been taken down, less than 24 hours after it first appeared on the city centre landmark.
The 10-foot figure, which was installed yesterday morning and depicted Ireland’s patron saint holding what appeared to be a pint of Guinness above the corner of the tourist trap pub, was removed earlier today.
Workers were seen detaching the statue from the front of the building before loading it onto trailer this morning.
A member of the installation team removing Saint Patrick this morning described it as a “pity”.
The beer held in the hand of the installation yesterday was covered with green material and shamrocks this morning, presumably to give the appearance Saint Patrick is now holding a bunch of shamrocks, rather than a beer.
Speaking to The Journal, the worker said he wasn’t sure what the pub’s plans for the huge bust are.
“We do as we’re told, we were told to take him down. If we’re told to put him back up we will,” he said.
“Maybe he might go up now he has his shamrocks,” he added.
When asked where the installation crew planned to cart the bust off to, he said they might “take him to the zoo now he’s seen Temple Bar”.
Passersby stopped to record St Patrick’s fall from grace, and several could be heard asking workers where the installation would go.
One worker told The Journal he had already been stopped by tourists asking why the bust had been removed.
The installation had already undergone alterations within hours of going up.
Shortly after 10.30am yesterday, workmen covered the pint in the saint’s hand with a black plastic bin bag. An hour later, this was replaced with a green cloth.
At the time, the pub’s manager said minor adjustments were being made as the decoration had “only just” been installed, adding that it was standard practice when putting up outdoor displays, including at Christmas.
The statue, created by an Irish artist in Co Monaghan, quickly drew attention from passersby and on social media, not least for the image of St Patrick appearing to toast onlookers with a pint outside one of the capital’s most famous pubs.
The Temple Bar, a focal point for St Patrick’s Festival celebrations each March, is no stranger to elaborate seasonal decorations.
However, the saint’s brief stint above the entrance has now come to an abrupt end.
It is not yet clear whether the statue will return, either whole or in an amended form, ahead of next month’s festivities.
The Temple Bar pub has been contacted for comment.
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