Mohammad-Hadi Ayyazi, the spokesman for the city government, said only sculptures by Iranian artists may be set up in public spaces in the capital.
Qodratollah Aqeli, a Tehran sculptor, said some of the city’s contractors had imported Chinese statuary for their “personal interests” and then installed “these shoddy sculptures” around the city, the Mehr news agency reported.
Ayyazi said the Beautification Office would decide what to do with the sculptures already placed on pedestals in public locations around the capital. He did not say how many such sculptures were currently on display in the capital.
A few years ago, the city suffered a rash of thefts of heavy statuary. Those thefts have since stopped, but there has never been any announcement about any arrests for those thefts.