Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

New statues in Moray town to attract visitors for generations

A range of new additions to the heart of a Moray community were unveiled at the weekend during a Christmas extravaganza.

Three statues depicting Elgin’s heritage to create a trail through the town went on public display for the first time in a day of celebrations.

Meanwhile, hundreds of skaters enjoyed their first taste of an open-air rink on the Plainstones with the launch of the inaugural Ice Festival.

And when darkness fell, the side of the historic St Giles Church was illuminated with images of Moray residents to show the future heritage of the region.

statue2

The string of activities created a buzz in the town centre on Saturday, while shoppers eagerly hunted for last-minute gifts on the final weekend before Christmas.

Last night, the new statues were hailed as a “fantastic attraction” in the town centre, which would keep attracting crowds back throughout the year.

Jim Royan, chairman of the Castle to Cathedral to Cashmere project, said: “They are already creating a lot of interest – people want to see them and there’s something for everybody in them. There are the classical ones and the more unconventional, which I think’s important.”

He added: “It’s taken a long time to get here but it’s been worthwhile. The investment is for future generations, so that visitors will find the centre of Elgin a much more interesting place.”

The afternoon began with the sight of the Wolf of Badenoch raising a sword in victory being unmasked at the west end of the High Street.

Interested spectators then huddled around Vik Quickly’s quirky half-lion, half-mermaid Dandy Lion sculpture on the Plainstones.

statue1

Drummer Owen Thomson, 12, and town crier Ken Smith, both dressed up in period costumes, and then headed the procession to the final statue at the east end of the High Street.

Owen looked on, as the drummer boy sculpture, which was revealed from underneath the cloth, bore a striking resemblance to himself.

Throughout the afternoon, hundreds of shoppers bought food and gifts at street stalls and took tentative steps onto the rink for the first Elgin Ice Festival.

Event director Jon Behari has been overwhelmed with skaters eager to demonstrate their skills in the town centre.

He said: “It’s been tremendous so far. All the sessions sold out on Saturday so everyone has really taken to it.

“There are lights set up for the evening sessions which changes the ambience of it dramatically. Everything gets lit up, it’s really spectacular.

“People have booked to come in on Christmas Day too. It’s something that has never been done in Elgin before, so it is a bit special.”

The launch event of the festival was cancelled on Friday evening due to late-arriving equipment. Organisers are now planning a closing gala on Saturday, January 7.

Mr Behari said: “We had something really special planned and we still want to do it.”