Portion of illegally felled tree from Sycamore Gap on display for hugging

Portion of illegally felled tree from Sycamore Gap on display for hugging

The remains of one famous plane tree, which has been built by Romans for over 200 years Hadrian's Wall in the north of England have found a new home almost two years after it was illegally felled.

Worldwide outrage after the felling

The removal of the tree from its well-known spot called “Sycamore Gap,” a prominent depression in Hadrian’s Wall, caused global outrage in September 2023. Sycamore Gap was considered one of England's most photographed trees and became known to millions of people when it appeared in Kevin Costner's 1991 blockbuster film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.

Punishment for the perpetrators

In May, two men were charged criminal damage convicted after they felled the prominent tree.

A new home for the tree

The largest remaining portion of the rescued trunk is now on permanent display at The Sill: National Landscape Discovery Center, about two miles from where the tree once stood. The National Trust of the United Kingdom donated this part of the trunk to the Northumberland National Park, where the tree originally stood.

A place of remembrance and hope

In a press release, the park said: "In the days and months following the felling, The Sill became a place of celebration and remembrance. Visitors left notes, letters, drawings and messages expressing grief, love and hope." After the felling, a public consultation was held on the future handling of the tree trunk. “The resulting exhibition honors the natural form of the tree and invites people to interact with it in a very personal way.”

A touchable tree trunk

A spokesperson for the park told CNN on Thursday that the component, which will be open to the public starting Friday, "can be touched and is huggable." The trunk stands upright, as it once did, and is surrounded by oak troughs and curved strips of wood that form a canopy in the shape of a giant leaf - replicating the protection the tree once provided to people.

Tributes from the community

Some tributes from the local community have been incorporated into the wood. Tony Gates, chief executive of the Northumberland National Park Authority, said in the press release: "The original tree may be gone in the form we knew, but its legacy remains and what has come since has been endlessly positive. This confirms our belief that people, nature and place cannot be separated and are interdependent."

A work of art as a tribute

Charlie Whinney, the artist behind the new exhibition, said: "This commission has been the greatest honor of my career. I really hope that in some small way we can help the people of Northumberland and those who held this tree in their hearts to come to terms with the loss they still feel following the illegal felling of the tree in September 2023."

“The work is hopeful for the future, the tree is growing again, and Sycamore Gap will always be a magical place to visit.” Whinney added.