“This sort of senseless vandalism has no place. It advances no cause.

“But we’ll work with the council and relevant authorities around any restoration and repair work that needs to be undertaken.”

The City of Melbourne had increased security around the statue,including 24-hour lighting and a voice recording to ward off vandals.

Lord Mayor Nick Reece said defacing or damaging city assets would not be tolerated,and the City of Melbourne was taking steps to stop damage to its statues.

“Our security team observed Cooks’ Cottage and the Captain Cook statue being damaged early on Tuesday morning – and implemented measures that prompted offenders to leave the scene,” Reece said.

“While there are a range of views on statues and memorials,each time a monument is damaged,it’s ultimately the ratepayer footing the bill – and that is unacceptable.”

McLean said police also regularly patrolled the area near the statue to deter vandalism.

“I think the community has a dim view of people who do this,” he said. “I don’t view them as protesters,I view them as criminals.”

The damage follows aspate of vandalism on colonial statues across Victoria,including the beheading of the statues of two former prime ministersin Ballarat and the regular defacement of the Captain Cook statueat Catani Gardens in St Kilda.

A King George V statue was beheaded on the King’s Birthday holiday in June last year,and the head has been missing since. Footage of the head set alight on a barbecue wasposted to social media on Australia Day.

According to the Captain Cook Society,the statue was sculpted by Marc Clark in 1973,and was owned privately before it was gifted to the City of Melbourne in 1996. The sculpture was moved into the garden at the cottage the following year.

Built in 1755,Cooks’ Cottage was the Yorkshire home of Captain Cook’s parents. The two-storey brick house and adjoining stable were shipped to Melbourne,reassembled and opened to the public in 1934.

The City of Melbourne security team alerted police,and police have secured CCTV vision from nearby cameras. Anyone with information is urged to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

With Alex Crowe

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