Visitors to Shrewsbury’s Dingle gardens have become used to seeing the cast iron horse in the Town Council’s Flanders Bed as part of the town’s First World War commemorations.
Nicknamed locally as “rusty”, the iron horse has now been removed from the bed and has returned to its original pastures at the British Ironwork Centre near Oswestry.
As part of their work with the Town Council, the company has loaned a herd of cast iron red deer for this year, which have been installed on the bank behind the floral clock in the Dingle.
Clive Knowles, Chairman of the British Ironwork Centre, said: “This fresh display celebrates our indigenous wildlife whilst educating children about our surrounding native mammals and paying homage to the beautiful red deer species.
“We hope that the placement of these sculptures will be a reminder that nature exists within our surrounding countryside and will prompt further thought into their conservation and protection. With deer numbers reaching its highest point yet in 2018, conserving these beautiful creatures is of highest importance.
“Story boards with reference to the history of deer will be displayed alongside the sculptures for educational purposes and we hope that people pay them a visit this year.”
The six new features of one stag and five hinds have been installed in the Dingle by Town Council staff and look majestic against the backdrop of the trees on the perimeter of the award-winning garden.
Helen Ball, town clerk for Shrewsbury Town Council, said: “We are very grateful to Clive Knowles at the British Ironwork Centre for the loan of these magnificent pieces of cast iron sculpture.
“We hope that visitors to the Dingle will enjoy looking out for our brand new features and admire the impressive role that these deer play in the conservation and eco-system of our Shropshire landscape.”
The British Ironwork Centre is one of Shropshire’s most unique visitor attractions, and is one of very few Sculpture Parks in the UK. The centre features acres of land filled with hand-crafted sculptures, on-site artisan workshops, a huge showroom filled with quirky and exciting displays, and a café serving the very best in homemade food sourced from high quality British produce. With new sculptures and displays constantly being added to the site, there is always something wonderful to see and do there for all ages.
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