posted 04-12-2018 10:31 AM               

The bust of Yuri Gagarin was ordered by the city council last year, and was put up on a street that bears his name, the Blic news website reports.

But its appearance — a tiny bust on top of a tall plinth — has been met by a hugely negative reaction, the paper says.

"The only way you can see it clearly is to launch yourself into the sky," the Noizz website says. "While this is somewhat symbolic," adds writer Ivana Stojanov, "there's certainly no common sense on show."

posted 04-12-2018 01:41 PM               

The bust of Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, erected on the street which bears his name in the Serbian capital, was removed by workmen on Tuesday, B92 news website reports.

Locals said that the tribute, placed next to a branch of McDonald's and facing a shopping centre, was an "insult" to the man who orbited the Earth on 12 April 1961. It featured a tiny bust of Gagarin on top of a tall plinth, which led to complaints that the statue was out of proportion.

Belgrade City Manager Goran Vesic says that a new work will be commissioned, and would only go up after getting the go-ahead from "all relevant institutions", B92 reported.