Project Background
Phineas is a large, wooden, polychrome statue. It has held an established position within the genealogy of student experience at UCL since 1900, when it was ‘captured’ to commemorate a Boer War victory. Resulting from a 2019 Student Union vote, Phineas was removed from display for its association with British imperialism.
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In 2019, UCL Students Union voted to remove the wood carving of Phineas from public display, as a response to concerns about how UCL presents itself to the world and accounts for its past behaviours. Concern around UCL’s dark pasts, and a desire to transform institutions and curricula in relation to contemporary ideas of social justice, have led to an intense focus on decolonising agendas. The Phineas statue was then crated and stored in the basement of the Student Union, its future use undecided.
The question remains what to do about Phineas’ statue?
Who is Phineas?
Initially adorning the front of a department store on Tottenham Court Road, the statue was stolen in 1900 by UCL students celebrating the relief of besieged troops at Ladysmith, South Africa, during the Boer War. Slowly but surely, it became the official mascot of UCL’s sports teams, and a pawn in the collegiate rivalry with King’s College, until it eventually was encased in glass and given pride of place in the UCL Student Union bar. There it remained until 2019, when the UCL community began to reconsider: is it still appropriate to have a military figure, especially one reminiscent of Britain’s colonial pursuits, as the mascot of an international university?
Phineas Has Fallen
In 2019, following a consultation period, the UCL Students’ Union voted to remove the wood carving of Phineas from public display, as a response to concerns about how UCL presents itself to the world and accounts for its past behaviours. Concern around UCL’s dark pasts, and a desire to transform institutions and curricula in relation to contemporary ideas of justice, have led to an intense focus on
decolonising agendas.
The results of the consultation found that, on the one hand, Phineas as a college mascot had become largely disconnected from its colonial connotations – with most students unaware of its historic ties. On the other hand, however, the SU and the UCL community at large recognised that having a military figure as mascot going forward would be inappropriate, and may contribute to creating an unwelcoming environment for its international community. And so it was decided: Phineas was demoted from its position as mascot.
What happens now?
The Phineas statue is currently crated and stored in the basement of the Student Union, its future use undecided. The question remains: what to do about Phineas?
Our project seeks to explore the consequences of creating absences and alternative presences caused by removing statues. Through panel discussion, exhibition and online engagement, we will consider conventional and more radical options for collection and disposal of these objects, focused on the current imperative of caring for Phineas’ statue. Scenarios could include:
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• Keeping Phineas stored in the basement
• Putting the statue on permanent display on campus
• Accessioning it into the UCL museums
• Placing it on long-term loan with another institution
• The theatrical destruction of the statue in the Quad!
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To kickstart the conversation, Phineas will be on temporary display in the cloisters at the end of June.
A public consultation will be held until October 2022, when a hybrid panel discussion with guest experts will be convened to focus the responses. There are many ways to make your voice heard on the matter – do Join the Debate, and help us decide on Phineas' future!
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This project is funded by the Centre for Critical Heritage Studies (CCHS).