A statue of 16th-century playwright Christopher Marlowe has been compared to Pirates of the Caribbean sea monster Davy Jones.
The £70,000 sculpture, made from woven strips of recycled steel, has drawn disapproval from some locals in Canterbury, Kent due to its lack of facial features.
Among those voicing their disapproval is former mayor George Metcalfe, who believes Marlowe deserves an installation bearing his likeness.
A statue of 16th-century playwright Christopher Marlowe has been compared to Pirates of the Caribbean sea monster Davy Jones.
Mr Metcalfe, 85, said: “Apart from anything else, it is absolutely terrifying. The face on it looks like a scary sea creature from Pirates of the Caribbean.
“I’m not opposed to having a statue, but I want it to look like a real person – an illustrative, figurative representation of Marlowe – so people can really appreciate him.
“Many famous people were born in Canterbury, but he is probably the most famous – he was born in the same year as Shakespeare and worked with him on some of his plays.
Among those voicing their disapproval is former mayor George Metcalfe, who believes Marlowe deserves an installation bearing his likeness
“In fact he was the most important playwright of his time and he was a wonderful character.
“I think this guy is really worthy of a statue and we need his face on it.”
Marlowe is among the most famous of Elizabethan playwrights, and modern scholars consider him the most prominent playwright in London in the years before his mysterious death at the age of 29.
Some academics also believe that he influenced William Shakespeare who succeeded him as the most distinguished playwright.
Mr Metcalfe, a former chairman of the registered charity Marlowe Society, wants to see Marlowe honored with a more realistic representation – similar to the statues of Geoffrey Chaucer, Queen Bertha and King Ethelbert which have already been erected in the town .
He added: “There are some beautiful statues in Canterbury – for example, the statue of Chaucer in the center of the city.
“When we have a lot of visitors, most of whom don’t know anything about the area, they tend to gather around that statue.
“It is watched and admired every day by hundreds of people.”
Mr Metcalfe believes the sculpture should be based on a painting of a young man believed to be Marlowe, which is held at Corpus Christi College at Cambridge University.
Mr Metcalfe, 85, said: “Apart from anything else, it is absolutely terrifying. The face on it looks like a scary sea creature from Pirates of the Caribbean
He said: “Cambridge University has a wonderful painting of a man we believe to be Christopher Marlowe.
“He was very handsome and, frankly, a beautiful statue of this handsome young man would look fabulous in Canterbury.”
The portrait of the brown-eyed youth was found in 1953 by workers under some rubble at the college where Marlowe was a student.
While many scholars believe it depicts the playwright, some critics have questioned whether this is actually the case.
However, campaigners who organized the Christopher Marlowe Statue Appeal have hit back at George’s criticism. They say the statue has been deliberately left faceless because there is no reliable depiction of what Marlowe actually looked like.
According to Mr. Metcalfe, other members of the Marlowe Society – which aims to educate the public about the playwright’s work – are unhappy with the statue’s design.
He added: “About two or three years ago we had an annual general meeting of the Marlowe Society in London.
“These clever ladies came up with an idea for a cartoon statue, and I stood up and said it was absolutely terrible.
“I asked people to raise their hands if they agreed and half the room did.”
Mr Metcalfe is also concerned about the proposal to erect the sculpture at St George’s Tower – the remains of the church where Marlowe was baptised.
He believes its downtown location will result in vandalism.
The 85-year-old said: “How the council gave planning permission to put this ghastly statue next to St George’s Tower – where it will just be spread by people – I just don’t know.”
But campaigners who organized the Christopher Marlowe Statue Appeal, Dr Virginia Webb and Diana Holbrook, have hit back at George’s criticism.
They say the statue has been deliberately left faceless because there is no reliable depiction of what Marlowe actually looked like.
Ms Webb said: “We don’t even know that the painting at Cambridge University is actually of Marlowe.
“It’s been a real challenge to incorporate all of Marlowe’s assets into a statue without knowing what he looks like.
“But we have hired the best local sculptor, Steven Portchmouth, who specializes in using recycled materials and has already created a wonderful bull sculpture in the town.”
The statue will depict Marlowe holding up the faces of comedy and tragedy in his right hand, in honor of his influence on literature, and a dagger in his left hand – alluding to his mysterious death.
His face will be represented by the leaves of a book and his clothing inspired by typical 16th century clothing.
There will also be a QR code printed on the base that visitors can scan to learn more about the poet.
According to Mrs. Webb, the prototype of the figure produced by the sculptor has attracted a lot of support from the public.
She also pointed out that the proposal did not face any opposition when it went through the formal planning process.
Ms Webb added: ‘The general public have been very complimentary of it.
“We have full planning permission from the council and there have been no objections to it.
“We also have a lot of financial and moral support from King’s School, where Marlowe was a pupil, and from the former Archbishop of Canterbury, Lord Rowan Williams.
“Dear George has started a one-man group project to print our statue appeal.
“He could have created a sculpture himself, but he didn’t.”
