Dublin City Council is considering steps to protect Molly Malone’s statue after so many tourists have rubbed her breasts ‘for luck’ that they have become discoloured. The Telegraph has more.
Tourists traditionally touch the iconic artwork, which represents a fictional street seller who died of a fever, for good luck.
But so many people have copped a feel that her bronze bust has now become discoloured, leading to a campaign to stop the “disrespectful” and “misogynistic” practice.
Student Tilly Cripwell, who busks in the area for about 10 hours each week, has launched a campaign calling on people to “leave Molly mAlone”.
The 22-year-old singer said: “The majority of people will touch her boobs for good luck, that’s a misogynistic tradition.
“A lot of people clamour around her, kiss her on the cheek, kiss her boobs, it’s all inappropriate. It’s reducing her to this derision and not giving her the status of being a national treasure.”
“This tradition is notorious to those within and without Dublin, with the discoloration of Molly’s breasts being the visual representation of such harassment,” she told the Irish Independent.
In response, Dublin city council is considering ways to protect the statue, which is in a revealing 17th-century dress.
“We are going to consider what to do and report back to our elected representatives,” Ray Yeates, Arts Officer at the council, told the Telegraph.
“It may be that education may be the answer but we will also consider protecting the statue.”
Among the options which will be considered are fencing, using seating or plants to form a barrier or even moving it to another location, although the council is very reluctant to take that step with the popular attraction.
Even statues are to be protected from harassment now, it appears.
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