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Yet another statue of Captain James Cook has been destroyed following vandalism that destroyed a different sculpture of the famous explorer in the run-up to Australia Day.
The bronze sculpture of the British explorer at the famous Cook’s Cottage in Fitzroy Gardens in Melbourne’s east was cut underfoot about 3.45am on Monday.
The words “the colony will fall” were painted next to the spot where the statue once stood.
It has since been taken into custody by Melbourne City Council.
A council spokesperson said CCTV footage allegedly captured four people cutting down the statue.
Another video posted online by an anonymous account appears to show masked individuals using an angle grinder to destroy the statue before it fell to the ground.
A statue of Captain James Cook next to the famous Cook’s Cottage in Melbourne’s east (pictured)
The council has provided Victoria Police with the CCTV footage and is assessing whether the statue can be repaired.
A Victoria Police spokesperson said they are investigating “criminal damage” and urged anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers.
The images taken by anonymous activists were posted online by a group that claimed “the colony continues to fall.”
“Monuments like this only serve to prop up the narrative that enables Australia’s continued theft and desecration of land and lives, and to legitimize its ongoing violence,” the post reads.
‘This narrative is as empty as a monument to a long-dead colonizer who met his just fate by being impaled by first nations warriors in Hawaii.
‘The words “the colony will fall” were painted next to the fallen statue, because we know that the colony CAN, MUST and WILL FALL.
“The legacy of the imposter Australian empire is slowly but surely crumbling around us, piece by piece, brick by brick, statue by statue.”
Sculpted by Marc Clark in 1973, the statue was erected on site in 1997 to stand next to the cottage owned by Captain Cook’s parents in the English village of Great Ayton in the 18th century.
Although he never lived in the house, Cook’s name was enough for him to be brought piece by piece to Australia in 1934, where he has been a tourist attraction ever since.
The hut itself was vandalized in 2014 by graffiti activists in an anti-Australia Day protest.
Fluorescent spray paint was used to write slogans such as “January 26, Australia’s shame”, while a window was also destroyed.
Vandals sawed off the statue just below the feet and left it lying on the ground, adding to the tourist attraction as visitors look to get a photo of the empty stand (pictured).
Images posted online appear to show a masked individual dressed all in black using an angle grinder to cut the statue from its pedestal before it fell to the ground (pictured)
It is the third time a monument to Captain Cook has been defaced in Melbourne this year.
A statue on St Kilda’s Jacka Boulevard was also hacked at the ankles the day before Australia Day.
The words “the colony will fall” were similarly written in red spray paint on a stone pedestal below where the statue normally stands.
On the same day, a statue of Queen Victoria in Queen Victoria Gardens near the city was also covered in red paint and graffiti.
A second monument to Captain Cook in Edinburgh Gardens in Fitzroy was found broken and covered in graffiti over the Australia Day long weekend.
Melbourne’s Port Phillip Council has committed to repairing and reinstalling the St Kilda monument, while a decision has yet to be made on the future of the Edinburgh Gardens monument.
Other visitors arrived at the site wearing T-shirts depicting the statue of Captain Cook that was slashed at the ankles and similarly had the phrase “the colony will fall” spray-painted next to it.