Mining sculpture erected in Sudbury

The Sudbury Mining Heritage Sculpture, celebrating the city’s mining history, has been erected in Bell Park.

The sculpture was unveiled in mid-September after several years in the planning stage.

The project was slated to cost $750,000 at the outset, but the Sudbury Mining Heritage Committee was only able to raise about $300,000 through corporate and private sponsors and through the federal government’s Millennium Partnership Program.

Timothy Schmalz, a renowned sculptor from Elmira, Ont., was commissioned to design the sculpture. Schmalz apprenticed under Canadian sculptor William McKelkrin but is probably best known for the Millennium Monument, commemorating Christ’s birth in Bethlehem.

The mining sculpture is mounted on a rock outcrop on a parcel of land donated by the city of Sudbury. The area housing the sculpture features 600 ft. of interlocking brick pathways and several natural stone benches.

Most of the construction and landscaping was donated by local businesses.