With record-breaking attendances at Kelvingrove Museum under his bones Dippy, the Natural History Museum London’s famous dinosaur, has proved a huge hit in Glasgow.
But today, on April fools day, bemused museum bosses are hunting an unknown prankster whose clandestine doing is sure to strengthen Dippy’s honorary Scot appeal.
Dippy has donned some rather unusual headgear, in the form of an over-sized orange and white traffic cone. The rather strange choice of accessory appears to be a nod to one of Glasgow’s most well-known monuments, the Wellington Statue.
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The equestrian statue of Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, located outside the Gallery of Modern Art, is one of Glasgow's most iconic landmarks.
Since the early 1980’s it has become something of a tradition to surreptitiously scale the statue and top it with a traffic cone. In 2011 the Lonely Planet guide included it in its list of the Top 10 most bizarre monuments on Earth .
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Chair of Glasgow Life, Councillor David McDonald said: "Glaswegians and visitors to our wonderful city have taken Dippy to their hearts. Clearly Dippy feels at home here, so much so he has his very own cone emulating Glasgow’s legendary Duke of Wellington statue, which has become a symbol of Glasgow’s identity, our unique and much-lauded sense of humour.
"Dippy on Tour has been the most successful temporary exhibition at Kelvingrove since it reopened after refurbishment 13 years ago. We’re unsure quite how the traffic cone came to crown this most majestic of creatures, who has captivated people and inspired thousands to enjoy a natural history adventure on their own doorstep."
Scottish historian Tom Rex added: "Arthur Wellesley 1st Duke of Wellington was best known for defeating Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo and several statues honouring him can be found across the UK. The one in Glasgow was designed by Italian sculptor Carlo Marochetti and erected in 1844.
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"The Wellington Statue, complete with orange and white traffic cone, draws tourists from across the world, brings a smile to locals’ lips and has inspired its own range of merchandise sold across the city, so I’m not surprised Dippy was keen to get in on the act. The Duke even made a cameo appearance in Danny Boyle’s BAFTA Scotland winning black comedy drama T2 Trainspotting."
Glasgow is the fourth stop on an eight city UK wide tour. Since opening to a rapturous Scottish audience in Kelvingrove Museum at the end of January, over 350,000 people have marvelled at the impressive 21.3 meter long diplodocus cast, setting a record for the highest number of visitors to date. This is more than 100,000 more people than in any other city on the tour so far – with five weeks of his visit still to go.
UPDATE: April Fools! Sorry, Glasgow - no one was able to climb as high as Dippy to carry out this act of comedy genius. You're stuck with the original and best Duke of Wellington for now - but Dippy is still in town until May.
