Rolleston statue returned to its rightful spot

He may have lost his head in an earthquake but you can’t keep a good man down.

The youngest descendents of William Rolleston, twins Ben and Charlotte Wigley, 2, and Freddy Rolleston, 5, were on hand to witness the unveiling of the restored statue.

Almost six years after falling backwards off his plinth and the head of the statue breaking off from the body, William Rolleston is back in one piece and continuing his sentry outside Canterbury Museum.

The 110-year-old statue of Canterbury’s last superintendent was a high profile casualty of the February 22, 2011 earthquake. After the dust had settled, the broken statue was put into storage while heritage experts worked on a plan to repair and strengthen it.

That repair and strengthening work has now been completed and the white marble statue of William Rolleston is back on its feet, standing on its plinth outside Canterbury Museum.

The location of the statue, which was designed by English sculptor Herbert Hampton, is significant as William Rolleston was instrumental in establishing the Museum.

Christchurch Mayor Lianne Dalziel, who unveiled the restored statue along with William Rolleston’s great grandson Humphry Rolleston, said the statue formed an important part of the historical landscape around the Museum and the Christchurch Arts Centre and it was really important to have it back where it belonged.

“This statue is an important part of the heritage fabric of Christchurch and we’ve missed having it outside the Museum. I’m so pleased we’ve been able to restore the statue and return it to its rightful home,’’ Ms Dalziel said.

Christchurch City Council Project Manager Jo Grigg said restoration of the statue had involved re-attaching Rolleston’s head with a pin and anchoring the statue back on its plinth using a structural clamp system.

Large chips of marble that had come off the statue when it fell to the ground had also been reattached, but there was still some minor restoration work to be done in the new year.

William Rolleston was Canterbury’s fourth and last Superintendent, serving from 1868 to 1877.