 "Donald Trump")
A naked statue of Donald Trump, complete with bulging belly and elaborate yellow hair, caused laughter and merriment in New York today until it was ripped up by park wardens.
Hands clasped across ample belly, the sculpture was unveiled in Union Square, gazing out across the busy street with an engraved plaque saying "The Emperor Has No Balls," witnesses said.
Indecline, a California-based company, released a video on their website showing a naked statue of the controversial Republican presidential nominee being made.
But New York's department of parks and recreation was unimpressed. Wardens ripped the statue from its base, then used spades to smash its feet and foam base to smithereens, and pry its metal platform from the ground.
"Parks has removed the sculpture," a spokesperson for the city's department of parks and recreation told AFP. "The installation of any unapproved structure or artwork in a city park is illegal."
Throughout the morning, passers-by stopped to take photographs, pose for selfies or laugh at the depiction of the New York billionaire.
"It was funny. Everybody was just over here laughing and taking pictures," said Rahshawn Gilmore, 22, who works in a nearby store. "It was amazing."
Gilmore said he did not find it offencive, but admitted some might given that children were "roaming around."
"You could see his personal bits," he explained.
"That was great craftsmanship, because they're having a hard time taking that apart," he added, breaking into giggles.
Peri Fisher, 48, a representative for an electronics company, said she was pleased to see a male politician "for a change" being judged on his appearance and criticised the decision to break it up.
"Personally I think Trump is insane and not fit to be president, not that (Democratic rival) Hillary Clinton really is either, but she's the lesser of two evils," she said.
"Right or wrong people have the right to put it up there. He's a public figure -- public figures are open to mockery. This was a mockery. It's just part of the American way of life," Fisher added.
