Tombili Returns to Its Neighborhood on World Animal Day

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Statue of cat Tombili known for its posture of resting its arm on pavement was erected today in the neighborhood where it spent its entire life.

Lived at Güleç Çıkmazı in Ziverbey neighborhood of Kadıköy district in İstanbul, cat Tombili had passed away on August 1, 2016. Following its death, a campaign to erect its statue was launched and animal lover and sculptor Seval Şahin had started to make the statue of Tombili after Kadıköy Municipality responded positively.

The statue was unveiled on October 4 World Animal Day.

Speaking at the unveiling of the stature, Kadıköy Vice Mayor Başar Necipoğlu explained that the works on statue began upon call of as many as 17,000 animal lovers on social media and that the statue was completed and placed on its place on World Animal Day.

The sculptor Şahin said:

“The statue was first worked with mud and then bronze poured on it. The statue was to be placed in an open area so it had to be made of durable, permanent material because of some environmental impacts. That is why we decided to make it of bronze”.

Şahin said she studied some books on animal anatomy and her friend’s cat Badem was helpful in this.

The residents showed interes in the unveiling of the statue. Some took photos with the statue. (OÜ/AS/TK)