Giant welcome to Amesbury (From Salisbury Journal)

Giant welcome to Amesbury

12:38pm Tuesday 29th June 2010 in

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VISITORS coming into Amesbury from the A303 at Solstice Park will have a giant welcome thanks to the installation of a new statue.

The Ancestor, built by Andy and Michelle Rawlings from A&R Sculpture in Durrington with the help of the community, is a 20ft statue of a man on his knees with his arms raised towards the sunrise.

After making its debut at Stonehenge for the summer solstice on June 21, the statue has now been placed at the Holiday Inn to greet drivers coming off the A303.

It took nine months to create the Ancestor using thousands of bits of steel pieced together like a jigsaw, and it weighs about seven tonnes.

The community rallied round to help, with students from Avon Valley College creating the headdress and local Scouts and primary schools creating flags for its debut at the solstice.

BLOB Andy and Michelle will be at the Durrington Vehicle Gathering and Village Show on July 18.