e wax statue of Russian President Vladimir Putin is being packed is a box before it is stored in the reseve, as a reaction to Russia's invasion of Ukraine on March 1, 2022 at the Grevin museum in Paris.
The wax figurine of Russian President Vladimir Putin previously on display at the Grevin Museum in Paris has been dismantled.Julien de Rosa/AFP via Getty Image
  • A museum in Paris has dismantled a wax figurine of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
  • The museum's director said the figurine was defaced by visitors, and staff did not want to have to keep fixing it.
  • Photos showed the wax figurine being dismantled and its head being put in a box for storage.

A Paris museum has dismantled its wax figure of Russian leader Vladimir Putin after it was defaced. 

Photos showed the staff at Paris' Grevin Museum taking apart the wax statue piece by piece. 

"Today is it no longer possible to present a character like him. For the first time in the museum's history, we are withdrawing a statue because of historical events currently underway," museum director Yves Delhommeau said during a radio interview with French channel France Bleu radio, as reported by Reuters. 

An employee of the Musee Grevin carries the body of the wax statue of Russian President Vladimir Putin, as it is packed to be stored in the reseve, as a reaction to Russia's invasion of Ukraine on March 1, 2022 at the Grevin museum in Paris.
A Grevin Museum staff member carries the body of the wax figure of Vladimir Putin.Julien de Rosa/AFP via Getty Images

Delhommeau said the waxwork had suffered some damage over the weekend from visitors. 

"Given what has happened, we and our staff do not want to have to fix his hair and appearance every day," Delhommeau told France Bleu radio. 

Delhommeau said the now-empty spot between US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping, which the Putin waxwork previously occupied, might be filled by a wax statue of Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky.

ves Delhommeau, Musee Grevin's French Director General, packs a wax statue of Russian President Vladimir Putin before it is stored in the reseve, as a reaction to Russia's invasion of Ukraine on March 1, 2022 at the Grevin museum in Paris.
ves Delhommeau, director of the Grevin Museum, packs the head of a wax statue of Russian President Vladimir Putin into a box.Julien de Rosa/AFP via Getty Images

"Maybe President Zelensky will take his place ... he has become a hero for having resisted and for not fleeing his country. He could perfectly well take his place his among the great men of history and today," he said to France Bleu radio, per Reuters.

The same wax figurine of Putin at the Grevin Museum was previously vandalized in June 2014, according to the AFP. At the time, photos showed the Putin statue toppled over with its head in pieces and a wooden stake driven through its abdomen. 

Insider's live blog of the Russian invasion of Ukraine is covering developments as they happen.

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