Around half of Sir Anthony Gormley's iconic Iron Men statues have been removed from Crosby Beach.
But there's no need to worry - it's just while new metal plinths are installed, to prevent the Iron Men subsiding or leaning over at right angles.
Work first started in the autumn of 2019 on the "refurbishment and maintenance plan" on the Another Place installation, including the re-erection of a number of statues which had tilted.
But work had to be halted after Covid-19 restrictions came into force.
Sir Anthony Gormley, 70, was at the beach yesterday (Monday) to oversee the renovation of his work and check his statues will stand at his preferred angle.
Figures of the iconic installation are now having new foundation pilings. The originals were only meant to last one year with the new replacements designed to last another 25 years and beyond.
Some of the figures have also been realigned to their original positions after shifting in the constant tides and moving sands over the years.
A spokesperson for Sefton Council said: "The artwork Another Place by Antony Gormley, situated at Crosby Beach, is currently undergoing routine maintenance.
"As part of this maintenance, it is necessary to temporarily remove some of the cast iron figures, or 'iron men', to allow work to be done on their structural supports.
"This work is being carried out to ensure that the figures remain upright and secure. We anticipate that maintenance work will be completed by late June 2021, when the figures will return to the beach.”
The Iron Men statues, created by sculptor Sir Antony Gormley, were first installed in Crosby Beach in 2005 for what was meant to be only a temporary installation.
After proving so popular with visitors, however, it was decided to leave them there permanently under the ownership of Sefton Council.
The 100 life-size body cast statues of Gormley look out towards true west across the River Mersey Estuary and attract tens of thousands of visitors each year.
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