The sculpture that has overlooked the old Saltash ferry slipway for 11 years has had a facelift.

The Saltash Ferryman was commissioned by Ashtorre Rock community centre following the 50th anniversary of the final ferry crossing, when the increase in traffic led to the opening of the Tamar Bridge in 1961 and the Waterside changed forever.

The Corten steel structure includes 64 brass panels, some of them etched by 10 Saltash artists to tell the story of the ferries and events of the past, and others preserving the memories of the last generation who recall growing up alongside the ferry.

The salty waterside environment tarnished the brasses more than anticipated, making the panels difficult to read, and previous attempts to clean them have had limited success. Ashtorre Rock was therefore very grateful that Osprey Metal Finishers, an award-winning specialist metal finishing company based in Borehamwood in Hertfordshire offered to help and to sponsor the work, alongside local fundraising covering the costs of removal, transportation and renewing the security fixings. Osprey has now cleaned and renovated the brass surfaces to restore a mirror finish and applied a resilient stove baked protective lacquer that should keep the panels bright and readable, so that passers-by can continue to understand the part the ferry played in the origin and growth of the town.

Osprey’s managing director, Daryl Lewis said: “It’s been such an honour to be part of restoring and maintaining a piece of Cornish history and for Ospreys to be able to give something back for the community. It was a wonderful piece to be involved with and we are proud to be part of an incredible project.”

Lynn Marsh, project lead and chair of Ashtorre Rock, said: “I would like to add my personal thanks to Daryl and his Osprey team. Without their generous sponsorship, and the supporters of our October talks programme, the refurbishment would not have been possible. The sculpture, which has been adopted by Saltash Town Council, highlights the importance of the ferry crossings in Saltash history and will, we hope, inform both locals and visitors for many years.

Created with the support of Heritage Lottery Fund, local businesses and public donations, The Saltash Ferryman was designed by Saltash artist John Forster. The artists who designed the illustrative panels were Bethan Crane, Chrissie Russell, Gillian Sweeney, James Thompson, Jo Beer, Lyn Douglass, Neil Mawdsley, Shari Hills, Stephen Beer and Vivienne Screech. The oral history project quotations were gathered by Stephanie Norgaard. Some of the team and members of the Ashtorre Rock committee came together to view the refurbished brasses.