- Location: Various
- Opening times: 24 hours (if on tour).
- Entry: Free (if on tour).
- Access: Local parking rules apply.
There is a section in this website labelled ‘Unsigned’ that includes entries falling under two categories. The first are sites I visited that I fully expected to be brown signed but, for whatever reason, were not. Examples in this category include Perth Museum, the Grace Darling Museum, Little Sparta, and St. Conan’s Kirk. The second category are sites I strongly suspected wouldn’t have brown signs, but I think are worth visiting and, in my case, worth writing about. Examples here include the statue of Greyfriars Bobby, the Torwood Blue Pool, and the Maggie Wall Witch Memorial.
The Knife Angel falls into this latter category, not least because having no permanent home renders a brown sign impossible. Instead, it tours the country, having visited fifty locations since it was first exhibited outside Liverpool Cathedral in November 2018. In 2024 its itinerary included stops at Leeds, Bury, Taunton, Weston-Super-Mare, Sunderland, Southend-on-Sea, Luton, Haverhill, and Oldbury. It made its first jaunt north of the border at the end of the year, when it was stationed outside Perth Museum from 2 – 28 December, which is where I saw it.
The Knife Angel falls into this latter category, not least because having no permanent home renders a brown sign impossible. Instead, it tours the country, having visited fifty locations since it was first exhibited outside Liverpool Cathedral in November 2018. In 2024 its itinerary included stops at Leeds, Bury, Taunton, Weston-Super-Mare, Sunderland, Southend-on-Sea, Luton, Haverhill, and Oldbury. It made its first jaunt north of the border at the end of the year, when it was stationed outside Perth Museum from 2 – 28 December, which is where I saw it.
The Knife Angel was created by sculptor Alfie Bradley in conjunction with the British Ironworks Centre and was supported by police forces up and down the country. It was constructed from knives and other bladed weapons surrendered during the ‘Save a Life, Surrender Your Knife’ campaign initiated by the Chairman of the Ironworks Centre, Clive Knowles, with the knives being deposited in over 200 knife banks created by the Ironworks and located around the U.K. After sterilisation and blunting, over 100,000 of them were used to create the 27-foot-tall Angel.
The Angel’s purpose is “to educate and raise national awareness around anti-violence and anti-aggression” and to trigger change for a more compassionate society. It also commemorates victims of knife violence, with 80 families who had lost loved ones inscribing messages into the blades comprising the Angel’s wings. When on tour it serves as a focal point for school and local government groups working on projects relating to violence and knife crime. It has been recognised by the Home Office as the National Monument Against Violence and Aggression.
With its dagger-edged wings and razor-clad robe, the Knife Angel could be interpreted as some sinister angel of death, but the sculptor has captured well the statue’s true intent via its body language. The face is anguished, and the hands are held out pleadingly, as if begging forgiveness for past sins or beseeching against future bloodshed.
It is certainly proving to be a hit with the people of Perth. Almost everyone walking by takes a photo, although quite a few do so without breaking their stride. “Look what I saw this afternoon”, they might boast to their mates later in the pub, but did they really? Thankfully they are in the minority, with most stopping to examine the statue fully and taking their pictures at leisure. Some even attempt reading the information banner tied to the fence surrounding the Angel, but all give up. This is fair enough as the wordcount was asking a bit much, and my past life in education made it clear attention spans ain’t what they used to be. Rather than one humongous info-blast I think a reduced wordcount spread across a series of bite-sized captions would have worked better.
None of which detracts from the Knife Angel, which is well worth seeing, and the cause it promotes. At this time of writing the Angel only has one appearance scheduled for 2025 – at Newton Aycliffe in County Durham in June – but presumably it can be visited at its home at the British Ironworks Centre in Oswestry, Shropshire. Check their website for opening hours.
Destination or Diversion?
I admired the Angel, I took the photos accompanying this piece, I read (nearly) all the bumf, I played the contemplative card with hand on chin (some rubbing may have been involved), and it still only took about fifteen minutes. The Knife Angel, therefore, is a diversion.
