City hides its statues from robbers

The eastern Dutch city of Nijmegen is taking 10 statues off the streets after some of its bronzes were stolen and most likely melted down to take advantage of the high price of the metal alloy.

The eastern Dutch city of Nijmegen is taking 10 statues off the streets after some of its bronzes were stolen and most likely melted down to take advantage of the high price of the metal alloy.

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Among the statues to be removed for safe-keeping is “Mariken van Nieumeghen” — or Mariken from Nijmegen — which refers to a local character in one of the Netherlands’ earliest books, written around the year 1500.

The city plans to protect the statues by implanting a GPS chip or may replace them with copies made from cheaper materials.

The council says the pieces which have been removed were the most vulnerable.