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Statue of Cecil Rhodes

The Statue of Cecil Rhodes is a work by John Tweed in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. It depicts the British businessman Cecil Rhodes, a mining magnate, founder of De Beers, founder of Rhodesia, and prime minister of the Cape Colony. The statue was erected in 1904 at the corner of Main Street and 8th Avenue in downtown Bulawayo, then part of Southern Rhodesia. Less than a year after Zimbabwe gained independence, the bronze statue was moved from the city center to Centenary Park, near the Natural History Museum.

Statue of Cecil Rhodes standing on a tall stone pedestal.
The Statue of Cecil Rhodes on a multi-tiered stone pedestal.
· CC BY 4.0
Statue of Cecil Rhodes on a tall stone pedestal in an outdoor paved area.
The Statue of Cecil Rhodes stands on a tall stone pedestal outdoors in Bulawayo.
© T D Ravenscroft · Public domain
Statue of Cecil Rhodes standing atop a tall stone plinth outdoors.
The Statue of Cecil Rhodes rises on a multi-tiered stone plinth outdoors.
© Bain News Service, publisher · Public domain
Statue of Cecil Rhodes standing on a large stone pedestal with text along the top edge.
The Statue of Cecil Rhodes stands atop a large stone pedestal.
© Bain News Service, publisher · Public domain
The statue of Cecil Rhodes rises on a tall stone pedestal in a crowded public square, with historic buildings in the background.
The statue of Cecil Rhodes standing on a tall pedestal in a crowded square.
1909 © · No restrictions

Identification

titleStatue of Cecil Rhodes
typepublic bronze statue

Creator

sculptorJohn Tweed
sculptor nationalityScottish

Historical context

subjectCecil Rhodes
depicted personCecil Rhodes
subject descriptionBritish businessman, mining magnate, colonialist, and politician; founder of De Beers, the British South Africa Company, and Rhodesia; Prime Minister of the Cape Colony
historical context at erectionBulawayo was then part of Southern Rhodesia

Discovery and provenance

model for statueA bust for which Rhodes had posed to Tweed in London in 1897
date erected1904
first public statue of RhodesYes

Location and ownership

relocated byThe new post-colonial authorities of Zimbabwe
reason for removalAfter Zimbabwe's independence in 1980
original locationBulawayo city centre, at the crossroads of Main Street and 8th Avenue, near the Rebellion Monument at the junction of Selborne Avenue
removed from city centreFebruary 1981
locationBulawayo, Zimbabwe
current locationCentenary Park, near the Natural History Museum of Zimbabwe, Bulawayo

Materials

materialbronze
pedestal materialgranite

Physical characteristics

pedestal descriptionvery tall granite pedestal

History and restoration

date movedA little less than one year after Zimbabwe's independence; the exact year is not specified

Iconography and meaning

association with colonial historyA symbolic statue of Rhodes and the colonization of Rhodesia