DUKE OF
WELLINGTON
The Duke of Wellington stands proudly outside of GOMA. His head is almost always decorated with a traffic cone, which has over the years become an unofficial symbol of the city.
BASIC INFORMATION
Nearest train/subway
Queen Street train station
What3words
WHERE IS IT?
In front of the Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) facing onto Queen Street, looking down the length of Ingram Street.
ABOUT
The Duke of Wellington statue is one of the defining symbols of Glasgow. The statue depicts Arthur Wellesley, the 1st Duke of Wellington, sitting proudly upon his loyal horse, Copenhagen.
The statue was sculpted by Italian artist Carlo Marochetti and erected in 1844. However, it came to prominence in the 1980s when locals started putting a cone on the statue’s head. The odd headwear has remained in place ever since, in one form or another.
Over the years, the statue with the traffic cone on its head has become an unofficial symbol of the city. Despite many attempts by Glasgow City Council to remove the traffic cones from the Category-A listed statue, they always seem to find a way back.
More recently, the traffic cone has been used for marketing and decorative purposes. Businesses and organisations design cones displaying messages or icons. In the summer of 2012, it was painted gold to honour the Scottish athletes who won gold medals at the London Olympics Games.
PHOTO GALLERY
