Police believe two offenders tried to cut off the statue’s head and spray-painted the cottage with anti-Cook messages.
Police believe two offenders tried to cut off the statue’s head and spray-painted the cottage with anti-Cook messages.
By Madeleine Heffernan
February 25, 2025 — 8.19am
The Captain Cook statue and cottage in Fitzroy Gardens have been vandalised again, just 12 days after being reinstalled following a repair job that cost $13,000.
Police believe two offenders tried to cut off the statue’s head and sprayed the cottage with anti-Captain Cook messages overnight.
The message was no longer visible on Tuesday morning but damage to the statue’s neck could still be seen.
“It is believed two offenders attended the cottage in Fitzroy Gardens and spray-painted the hut about 2am,” Victoria Police said on Tuesday.
“The cottage has been defaced with what appears to be various anti-Cook messages.”
The bronze statue of Captain Cook was hacked from its plinth just under a year ago and was recently reinstalled in the park on the eastern edge of Melbourne’s CBD following repairs worth $13,000.
The City of Melbourne had increased security around the statue, including 24-hour lighting and a voice recording to ward off vandals.
Lord Mayor Nick Reece said defacing or damaging city assets would not be tolerated, and the City of Melbourne was taking steps to stop damage to its statues.
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“Our security team observed Cooks’ Cottage and the Captain Cook statue being damaged early on Tuesday morning – and implemented measures that prompted offenders to leave the scene,” Reece said.
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“While there are a range of views on statues and memorials, each time a monument is damaged, it’s ultimately the ratepayer footing the bill – and that is unacceptable.”
The damage follows a spate of vandalism on colonial statues across Victoria, including the beheading of the statues of two former prime ministers in Ballarat and the regular defacement of the Captain Cook statue at Catani Gardens in St Kilda.
A King George V statue was beheaded on the King’s Birthday holiday in June last year, and the head has been missing since. Footage of the head set alight on a barbecue was posted to social media on Australia Day.
According to the Captain Cook Society, the statue was sculpted by Marc Clark in 1973, and was owned privately before it was gifted to the City of Melbourne in 1996. The sculpture was moved into the garden at the cottage the following year.
Built in 1755, Cooks’ Cottage was the Yorkshire home of Captain Cook’s parents, with the two-storey brick house and its adjoining stable taken apart and shipped from England to be rebuilt in Melbourne. The attraction was opened to the public in 1934.
The City of Melbourne security team alerted police, and police have secured CCTV vision from nearby cameras. Anyone with information is urged to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
With Alex Crowe
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Madeleine Heffernan is a consumer affairs reporter for The Age. She has also reported on education, city and business for the publication.Connect via Twitter.
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