Banksy’s ninth and final animal-themed mural across London has been removed by London Zoo for “safe storage” – find out more below.

• READ MORE: IDLES at Glastonbury 2024: Banksy-backed protest exceeds even high expectations

The nine-part series began on Monday (August 5) with a mural of a goat perched precariously on a ledge in Richmond. This was followed on Tuesday by two elephants with their trunks almost touching outside windows in Chelsea. Since then, Banky has unveiled a new animal-themed mural every day until August 13.

Last Tuesday (13 August), the elusive Banksy unveiled the ninth and final animal mural on the shutters of London Zoo, depicting a gorilla lifting the shutters to allow other animals to escape.

On Friday (16 August), London Zoo confirmed it had removed the painting for “safety”, writing on X (formerly Twitter): “The artwork will be removed from public display on Friday evening to keep it safe and to make full use of our entrance during the busy summer period. We hope as many of you as possible can visit the work tomorrow!”

Last chance to visit 🦍

For safety reasons, the artwork will be removed from public display on Friday evening so that we can make the most of our entrance during the busy summer period.

We hope that as many of you as possible can see the piece tomorrow! #Banksy pic.twitter.com/LwlCjwHc0M

— London Zoo (@zsllondonzoo) 15 August 2024

The next day, the zoo responded to a follower’s inquiry about what would happen to the mural: “We are still working on what exactly we will do with the artwork, but we want to properly preserve this moment in our history!”

Hi Ada, we are still working on what exactly we will do with the artwork, but we want to preserve this moment in our history!

— London Zoo (@zsllondonzoo) 17 August 2024

On Wednesday (August 7), three monkeys swinging from a bridge in Shoreditch arrived, and on Thursday a wolf howling at the moon from a satellite dish in Peckham was stolen almost immediately.

On Friday (August 9), two pelicans suddenly appeared eating fish outside a fish and chip shop in Walthamstow, and on Saturday (August 10), a stretching cat appeared on a wooden billboard on Edgware Road.

Other murals in the series included artworks such as a school of fish swimming on the glass front of a box on Ludgate Hill and a rhinoceros leaning on a flat car.

Last week (10 August), Banksy’s support organisation Pest Control Office reported that he wanted the project to lift public spirits at a time when the country is being ravaged by far-right unrest, with uplifting and surprising moments of joy or amusement, highlighting the human capacity for creativity rather than destruction.

The report adds that audiences can expect more new works in the series for “a few more days”. It follows a more politically motivated intervention by Banksy at this year’s Glastonbury, when an immigrant boat filled with dolls was thrown into the crowd during IDLES’ performance on the Other Stage and then again during Little Simz’s performance on the Pyramid Stage.

The boat was a visual reference to the current refugee crisis, which had become the focus of then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s immigration policy. The then-Home Secretary James Cleverly criticised the stunt, calling it “disgusting”.

In response, Banksy said: “The Department of Homeland Security called my Glastonbury boat ‘disgusting and unacceptable’, which I thought was a bit over the top. The real boat I fund, the MV Louise Michael, rescued 17 unaccompanied children from the central Mediterranean on Monday night. As punishment, the Italian authorities have detained it – which I find distasteful and unacceptable.”