The Angel of the North is the pride of Gateshead and Newcastle, visited by 150,000 visitors per year, and appreciated by thousands motorists on the A1 and A167 and passengers on the East Coast Main Line Rail Route.
Work began on the iconic sculpture in 1994, and it was completed in 1998. Since then, it has stood proudly at the entrance of Tyneside, providing visitors to the area with a warm welcome thanks to its wide-open wings. Indeed, when he designed the Angel, sculptor Antony Gormley said that he wanted to create a “sense of embrace” and, thanks to the sculpture’s wingspan of 175ft, he has certainly achieved his goal.
The Angel of the North had to be built to withstand winds of 100mph, so the 208-tonne sculpture was anchored into the ground by 165 tonnes of concrete. This was particularly important as the sculpture stands on the site of a former colliery, meaning the ground is rocky and unstable underneath. The Angel also had to be weatherproof, so it was constructed from weather-resistant steel that contains copper. This hardy coating gives the sculpture its beautiful rich red colour and ensures that it will last for at least a century.
It’s not surprising that the Angel of the North casts such a welcome shadow over Gateshead and Newcastle – it’s a whopping 65ft tall, which is the equivalent of more than four double decker buses. When built, the million-pound sculpture was cast in three separate pieces – the body and two wings - at Hartlepool Steel Fabrications. The body alone weighed a huge 110 tonnes, while the wings weighted 55 tonnes each.
The Angel of the North celebrates its tenth birthday this year. Visit the Gateshead Council website to discover more about some of events planned to commemorate this special occasion.