Southland and Museum Art Gallery manager Wayne Marriott is looking forward to having Minerva on display again. The statue of Minerva was removed from the museum for repairs in 2018. He said Minerva was in storage, not for a lack of trying to get the statue rehomed. Minerva is the Roman goddess of wisdom and strategic war (equivalent to the Greek goddess Athena). On October 31, 1940, the Baths and Library Committee recommended the statue of Minerva, housed in the library building, be demolished and sold as scrap metal.

Source: Otago Daily Times October 08, 2021 15:33 UTC