Posted on 06/04/2003 2:47:20 PM PDT by dfc62
Marines from Somerset have brought home an unusual souvenir of their time in Iraq - an eight-foot statue of Saddam Hussein. The men of Taunton-based 40 Commando found the two-tonne sculpture while they were fighting in a town near Basra.
And when they left the country they decided to bring it home with them.
The solid brass creation - similar to one torn down by US forces in Baghdad, symbolising the end of Saddam's reign - now has a new home in the officers' mess.
'Humorous curio'
The toppling of a statue of Saddam symbolised the end of his reign
Major Ross Preston said: "We took the statue from a town in the south east of Iraq.
"We brought it into an area we had secured nearby just for humour, as a bit of a curio.
"Then we realised we could potentially bring it back to the UK, so we did, as a memento of our time in Iraq."
And the statue is sure to prove something of a talking point.
"He is going to reside in the officers' mess at Norton Fitzwarren," said Major Preston.
Talking point
"He seems to be pointing towards something, so I suspect an irreverent sign of some description will be hung from his arm.
"We haven't quite decided what to do with him, but I am sure there will be plenty of debate."
The statue has attracted the attention of the Foreign Office and customs.
But 40 Commando say the statue is neither an antiquity nor a national treasure and probably would have been smashed if left in Iraq.
You forgot the Republic of Boulder, which is a time-warp of 1960s Berkeley...also new-age Santa Cruz...and, of course, San Francisco, where anything goes.
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