Belfast’s ‘Magic Jug’ dropped

BBC NI Radio Ulster’s Evening Extra has reported that the Northern Ireland Department for Social Development have confirmed that the ‘Magic Jug’ public art sculpture, destined for Fountain Street, Belfast, has been cancelled. [added link to BBC report]

Nothing to do with the campaign, apparently.  The £100,000 cost has been cited as the main factor in the decision.  They have, reportedly, already spent £20,000 on the commissioning process.

Adds  In the comments zone Moochin points to this 27 Aug letter from the Department, responding to a 22 May letter from the campaigners against the sculpture.

We are reader supported. Donate to keep Slugger lit!

For over 20 years, Slugger has been an independent place for debate and new ideas. We have published over 40,000 posts and over one and a half million comments on the site. Each month we have over 70,000 readers. All this we have accomplished with only volunteers we have never had any paid staff.

Slugger does not receive any funding, and we respect our readers, so we will never run intrusive ads or sponsored posts. Instead, we are reader-supported. Help us keep Slugger independent by becoming a friend of Slugger. While we run a tight ship and no one gets paid to write, we need money to help us cover our costs.

If you like what we do, we are asking you to consider giving a monthly donation of any amount, or you can give a one-off donation. Any amount is appreciated.