Tartan Army Fans Crown 17 Boston Statues With Traffic Cones Before Miami Match

Q: Was the 'coning' of historic statues universally celebrated, or did some view the beloved Scottish tradition as simple vandalism?

No. The statue “coning” was not universally celebrated; alongside the affection and humor it inspired, some officials and observers regarded it as vandalism. In Glasgow, where the custom began in the 1980s with the Duke of Wellington statue, city authorities long pushed back. The council publicly described the act as vandalism, and police warned that people could face criminal charges, citing minor damage and safety risks. Even so, the cone repeatedly reappeared and eventually became an accepted emblem of the city’s irreverent character. Boston saw a similar split, though the overall public mood appeared warmer. Many locals and visiting Scotland fans treated the cones as a playful cultural gesture, taking photos and selfies with statues topped by orange traffic cones. The tradition was widely framed as a light-hearted symbol of the Tartan Army’s presence, and even Mayor Michelle Wu was reported to have joined in by placing a cone on a statue herself. But that did not mean universal approval. Boston authorities moved to remove cones from statues, and at least some public reaction cast the act in harsher terms, including online complaints that the city had been “vandalized.” So while the tradition was broadly embraced as mischievous fun and a memorable part of Boston’s “Scottish summer,” it also drew the familiar criticism that it crossed the line from prank to property defacement.

2 articles · Updated · NBC Boston · Jun 21

Seventeen Boston-area statues ended up wearing orange traffic cones as Scotland’s Tartan Army wrapped up two World Cup games in the city and prepared to head to Miami.
The stunt carries a roughly 40-year Glasgow tradition, where the Duke of Wellington statue is routinely topped with a cone and has become a symbol of the city’s irreverent civic identity.
Boston examples included statues of Samuel Adams, Bill Russell, Edward Everett Hale and Salem’s “Bewitched” statue, leaving a visible fan imprint across the area.
With Scotland’s supporters moving on for the final group match, it remains unclear how long the cones will stay, but the images have already become a lasting souvenir of Boston’s Scottish summer.