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Ballarat Statue
Dunedin's ambition of having the first statue of Burns in the Southern Hemisphere was dashed by the Australian gold-rush town of Ballarat whose Scottish citizens formed the customary committee in November 1884 and published a circular announcing their intentions.
Where Ballarat scored over Dunedin was in turning to local talent, for the design was produced by a Mr Thomson who fashioned a clay model of the poet in conventional garb, complete with plaid, a pen in one hand and a book in the other.
The facial expression bespeaks deep thought as if he were about to compose a poem. At his side sits his faithful dog, gazing up affectionately at his master. The likeness is not particularly close to Nasmyth, but this may be due to the fact that Thomson's model suffered enlargement, for it was sent to Italy to be carved in Carrara marble by John Udney.
The statue was erected on a tall pedestal of Bluestone and Harcourt granite decorated copiously with quotations from some of the best-loved poems. The statue was unveiled on Labour Day, 21st April 1887, in the town centre opposite the Post Office.
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