Sprucing up Robert the Bruce for 700th anniversary

THE public got a glimpse of the Robert the Bruce statue as it was meant to be yesterday, as work continued to have the figure restored in time for the 700th anniversary of the Battle of Bannockburn in 2014.

Over the past five decades, exposure to the weather has turned the category A-listed bronze monument, located at the ancient battleground near Stirling, green.

The site is said to be where Bruce defeated King Edward II’s English army to secure an independent monarch for Scotland.

The statue, by sculptor Charles d’Orville Pilkington Jackson, depicts the Scottish King wielding an axe on a war horse. It was unveiled by the Queen in 1964 to mark 650 years since the 1314 battle.

It is currently shielded from public view and winter weather behind scaffolding while work is carried out.

A spokeswoman for the National Trust of Scotland said: “Work is under way to clean, repair and wax seal the bronze following procedures based on best conservation practice.”