A GRADE I listed building has had an iconic symbol restored using the original mould.

A new 'Spirit of Liberty' statue (pictured right), which is on top of the Clock Tower at Cliveden House in Taplow, will be seen from miles around.

The statue, which first appeared in the 19th century, is a winged nude perched on one foot, holding the torch of civilisation in one hand and the remains of his broken chains in the other.

The first statue was built in the 1860s, but was destroyed after falling from the tower in the mid-20th century, before a low-grade replacement was eventually removed in the 1990s. The statue was lifted into place on Thursday, last week, by a 50m crane and fastened to an orb on top of the tower with the help of two steeplejacks in a complex procedure that took five hours.

The National Trust worked with metalwork and sculpture specialists, Rupert Harris Conservation, to research the statue who discovered the original mould was in a museum in Semur-en-Auxois, a small town in France.

The project has cost almost �68,000 of which �7,600 was raised by Cliveden's visitors who purchased raffle tickets last year.