Robbery-hit city hides its statues

[Space Invaders]

Robbery-hit city hides its statues

AMSTERDAM | Wed Nov 10, 2010 2:31pm EST

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - The eastern Dutch city of Nijmegen is taking 10 statues off the streets after some of its bronzes were stolen and most likely melted down to take advantage of the high price of the metal alloy. Among the statues to be removed for safe-keeping is "Mariken van Nieumeghen" -- or Mariken from Nijmegen -- which refers to a local character in one of the Netherlands' earliest books, written around the year 1500. The city plans to protect the statues by implanting a GPS chip or may replace them with copies made from cheaper materials.

(Reporting by Marcel Michelson; Editing by Sara Webb)