THE replacement statue of a Celtic sea god sculpture stolen from Binevenagh mountain outside Limavady 13 months ago is back in its rightful place.
Thugs hacked down and stole the Manannán Mac Lir sculpture in January 2015.
Its mystery disappearances sparked a police hunt after it vanished.
The Bannside Ramblers stumbled across the damaged statue not far from its original spot, at Gortmore Viewing Point, close to a month after it went missing.
The fibre glass statue sparked an online campaign.
Thousands of people from around the world joined a Facebook page – Bring Back Manannán Mac Lir the Sea God – following its disappearance.
Limavady PSNI even launched a ‘missing person’ appeal and carried out a land and air search in a bid to track it down.
Thieves left a wooden cross in place of the statue with the words “you shall have no other gods before me”.
Sculptor, John Darren Sutton, who has worked on the hit TV show Game of Thrones, is the man behind the sculpture and has been working on the replacement statue for several months.
A spokesperson for Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council said: “We are delighted that Mr Sutton has completed the new sculpture of Mannanán Mac Lir.
“We are delighted the artwork has returned to Gortmore viewpoint.”
How the statue was left after it was hacked down and stolen
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