Mystery surrounding 8ft totem pole which has appeared on Kent coastal path

  • The totem pole appeared on the coastal path between Dover and Folkestone in Kent

An appeal has been issued for a mystery artist to come forward after an 8ft totem pole mysteriously appeared on the clifftop at Capel-Le-Ferne in Kent.

The sculpture was spotted by walkers along the North Downs Way coastal path, between Dover and Folkestone.

The landowner hopes it'll become a permanent fixture.

The inscription on the structure reads 'Perkunas' which is the Baltic God of lightning and thunder and storms. Credit: ITV Meridian

Ian Rickards Area Manager at Kent Wildlife Trust said there's been lots of suggestions why it could have been created, including an offering to the gods to try and protect the coastal waters.

Referring to the mystery artist he said: "Hopefully that person will have seen what's going on, as seen we want to get in touch with them.

"They're certainly not in any trouble we just really want to talk to them find out the story behind the structure and see if they can work out the process of getting it to stay here permanently as well."

  • Ian Rickards Area Manager at Kent Wildlife Trust

The inscription on the structure reads 'Perkunas' which is the Baltic God of lightning and thunder and storms.

Ian said that could be significant, he said: "Apparently this structure is very similar to ones which would have been built in the 13th and 14th centuries as offerings to appease the gods.

"Potentially from the Lithuanian community maybe, because that's where these sorts of pagan religions would have come from. But beyond that, it's really just guesswork."

The totem pole was erected without planning permission, but there are now calls for it to be a permanent fixture.

Kent Wildlife Trust is urging people to help keep it in place.

Posting on Twitter, a spokesperson said: "Help us keep our mystery totem pole for everyone to enjoy as they visit our reserve.

"All we need is £1500 to assess the pole and make a retrospective planning application."

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