Graffiti sprayed on historic Peterborough Cathedral gates

The 800 year old gates on the Norman Arch - England’s oldest working gates - have had the word ‘Free’ scrawled on them in white spray paint.

A Cambridgeshire police spokeswoman said: “We were called at about 5pm on 16 June with reports of criminal damage at Cathedral Square, Peterborough.

“Officers attended and a man was arrested on suspicion of causing criminal damage.

“Pavol Chern, 41, has since been charged with the offence and has been bailed to appear at Peterborough Mags’ Court on 23 July.”

A spokesperson for the Cathedral said: “We are obviously very concerned about this graffiti and its effect on the gates. The external timbers date from the late 18th or early 19th century and repairs to wood of this age are a costly and time consuming job for specialist conservators. We are currently looking into what the options are, including contacting our insurers, but this does present an unwelcome distraction from other essential maintenance and the phased re-opening of the Cathedral following lockdown.”

In April 2008, in a freak accident, a car crashed into the gate and wall, damaging both.