A bronze statue of Melania Trump has mysteriously disappeared from her hometown of Sevnica, Slovenia, in an incident local police are treating as theft. The two-metre-tall artwork, which once stood proudly on a tree stump near the River Sava, now consists only of its feet cleanly severed from the rest of the figure.
The statue’s sudden disappearance comes four months after Melania’s return to the White House following Donald Trump’s re-election. While that political development has sparked renewed interest in the former First Lady, the motivations behind the statue’s removal remain unclear.
This is not the first time a tribute to Sevnica’s most famous daughter has met an untimely end. The original version, a wooden carving by local artisan Ales “Maxi” Zupevc, was unveiled in July 2019. That statue was controversially torched in 2020, on the Fourth of July, in what many saw as a politically charged act of vandalism.
Following the arson, American conceptual artist Brad Downey who had commissioned the piece—replaced it with a bronze replica. Downey had chosen Zupevc for the project due to his shared background with Melania Trump, both having grown up in modest circumstances in Slovenia. The artist also made clear that the work had political undertones, contrasting Melania’s privileged immigration story with her husband’s hardline stance on immigration.
At the time of the statue’s bronze unveiling, Downey expressed confidence in its permanence, describing it as “solid” and “durable.” Yet the statue’s recent removal, apparently sawn off at the ankles, highlights its continued vulnerability.
Downey now suspects the latest incident might be linked to Trump’s political resurgence, stating that the theft “has something to do with Trump getting re-elected.”
Local authorities have condemned the act, stating they oppose “any form of interference with private or public property.” Police have launched an investigation into the theft, but as of now, the whereabouts of Melania’s metallic doppelgänger remain unknown.
With the statue gone and only a pair of feet left behind, Sevnica finds itself once again at the curious crossroads of art, politics, and local mischief.
