Neptune Statue, Lowestoft Seafront

The Neptune statue stands on the Royal Plain at Lowestoft seafront, a short walk from the town's South Pier and the harbour mouth. Cast in bronze, the sculpture shows the Roman sea god locked in combat with a large sea serpent coiling around his body, trident raised. It's a striking piece of public art for a town whose fortunes have long been tied to the North Sea, first through herring fishing and later through offshore energy.

The figure was originally created by the Italian sculptor Amilcare Santini in the mid-twentieth century and spent decades in private ownership before being donated to Lowestoft, where it was installed on the seafront in 2009. It sits close to the East Point Pavilion and the war memorial, making it an easy stop on any walk along the promenade between Claremont Pier and the harbour.

A quirky detail: Lowestoft is the most easterly town in the United Kingdom, so Neptune here is arguably the first statue in Britain to catch the morning sun rising over the sea. Locals sometimes refer to him simply as "Neptune" without further explanation, and the sculpture has become a popular meeting point and photo spot, particularly at sunrise when the low light picks out the muscular detail of the figure and the scales of the serpent.