Sadness as wooden sculpture attacked again
BBCA heritage leader in Buxton has said he is "incredibly saddened" after a woodland sculpture was vandalised for a second time.
The artwork, which depicts a female quarry worker and was given the name Martha, has been pulled down by vandals in Grin Low Woods two years after having its eyes gouged out.
It follows other instances of vandalism in the woods and has prompted Derbyshire Police to appeal for information.
"It is deeply frustrating that a small number of individuals continue to damage places that belong to everyone," said Dave Green, chief executive of Buxton Civic Association, which maintains the woods.
"We are incredibly saddened that Martha has been deliberately knocked over. It wasn't an accident – it took considerable force to cause this level of damage."
The woods already featured a wooden sculpture of a quarry worker called Charlie, which was etched with a swastika by vandals five years ago.
A fundraiser was launched to pay for repairs and the left over money funded the carving of Martha, designed to represent women who worked in quarries that formerly occupied the site.
But a year after its 2023 unveiling, the statue's eyes were gouged out.
Meanwhile in March this year vandals cut down 27 established trees in the wood to build a den, with replacements costing £20,000.
In the latest incident on Monday evening, the sculpture's legs were broken. It has now been taken to the civic association's office to be repaired.
The association's woodland manager Harriet Saltis said: "The frustrating part is we don't know why they've done it, why would they damage such a a positive representation of the heritage and the history of Buxton.
"I'm looking at Martha now just lying on the floor just being supported by a couple bits of wood here and there's definitely a sense of deja vu."
Anyone with any information has been asked to contact Derbyshire Police.
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