There's A Rabbit In Nelson Mandela's Ear. What Is Going On?
A 'hare-raising' situation has developed in South Africa with the discovery of an unintended addition to a statue dedicated to the former president.
By Sadho Ram — 25 Jan 2014, 02:51 PM — Updated almost 11 years ago
SA Officials Recently Discovered Something Strange Inside The Ear Of A New 30-Foot Statue Of Nelson Mandela: A Rabbit
Look closely and you can see the tiny rabbit that sculptors Andre Prinsloo and Ruhan Janse van Vuuren put inside the ear of their nearly 30-foot-tall statue of late South African President Nelson Mandela at the Union Buildings in Pretoria.
Image via npr.orgThe Sculptors Included The Bronze Rabbit Because They Were Refused Permission To Engrave Their Signatures In The Statue Of The Former President
The story begins Dec. 16, a day after Mandela's funeral, when President Jacob Zuma unveiled the statue by Andre Prinsloo and Ruhan Janse van Vuuren at Pretoria's Union Buildings, the government's headquarters.
npr.orgThe nearly 30-foot-tall bronze-plated work has Mandela standing with his hands reaching outward, as if embracing all of South Africa.
The 30ft bronze statue was unveiled day after Mandela's funeral in December
Image via dailymail.co.ukPrinsloo and van Vuuren then told the Afrikaans-language Beeld newspaper that they'd inserted a tiny rabbit in the ear as a "small trademark" after authorities refused to let them engrave their names on the statue's trousers.
theguardian.com
Andre Prinsloo And Ruhan Janse Van Vuuren Say The Rabbit Is A Discreet Signature On Their Work, But Officials Want It Removed
They said they chose the rabbit because of the haste with which they had to complete the statue. The word for rabbit in Afrikaans is haas, which also translates to "haste."
npr.orgOfficials demand that the miniature rabbit is to be removed from the statue, claiming it mocks Mandela and his life’s work.
dailymail.co.uk
The department of arts and culture said it didn't know the two sculptors, Andre Prinsloo and Ruhan Janse van Vuuren, had added a rabbit, said to be a discreet signature on their work.
time.com
‘It Doesn't Belong There,’ Said Mogomotsi Mogodiri, A Department Spokesman. ‘The Statue Represents What Everyone In SA Is Proud Of.'
"There are deliberations at present on how best to retain the integrity of the sculpture without causing any damage or disfigurement," according to a statement issued by the Department of Arts and Culture.
The statue was unveiled after much anticipation following Nelson Mandela's death in December
Image via dailymail.co.ukPaul Mashatile, arts and culture minister, said the sculptors have apologized for any offense to those who felt the rabbit was disrespectful toward the legacy of Mandela.
dailymail.co.uk
The rabbit in Nelson Mandela's ear is said to symbolise the pressure of finishing the piece – 'haas' in Afrikaans means both haste and hare.
Image via guim.co.ukThe sculptors, who are part of South Africa's white Afrikaner minority, were selected in part because the project was a multiracial effort in keeping with Mandela's principles.