The bust of former Chancellor Helmut Kohl (CDU) next to Speyer Cathedral was smeared with feces at the weekend. The police are investigating unknown persons, as a spokesman confirmed on Monday.
The bronze portrait by the sculptor Wolf Spitzer, which was inaugurated last year, consists of a sandstone base and a 45 centimeter high bust. Lettering reads “Chancellor of Unity” and “Honorary Citizen of Europe”.
As the head of cathedral culture management, Friederike Walter, announced on Monday, the work of art has now been cleaned. The damage was noticed on Sunday morning during an event in the Kaiserdom.
According to Walter, the mayor of Speyer, Monika Kabs (CDU), who was present there, clarified “on the short official route” that city employees took care of cleaning the bust immediately.
The monument was donated by the European Foundation Kaiserdom. Kohl (1930-2017) played a key role in founding the foundation and was chairman of the board of trustees until his death. As Chancellor, he guided Jacques Chirac, Margaret Thatcher, Mikhail Gorbachev, George Bush, Vaclav Havel, Boris Yeltsin, John Major and King Juan Carlos through the cathedral, among others. (KNA)
