Verity

Top choice in North Devon


Pregnant, naked and holding aloft a huge spear, Damien Hirst's 20m statue Verity towers above Ilfracombe's harbour mouth. On the seaward side her skin is peeled back, revealing sinew, fat and foetus. Critics say she detracts from the scenery; the artist says she's an allegory for truth and justice. Either way, she's drawing the crowds.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby North Devon attractions

1. Ilfracombe Aquarium

0.04 MILES

Recreates aquatic environments from Exmoor to the Atlantic, via estuary, rock pool and harbour.

2. Arlington Court

6.99 MILES

The honey-grey Regency manor house of Arlington Court exudes charm, from the model ships and shells collected by the owners, to the produce-packed walled…

3. Broomhill Sculpture Gardens

7.42 MILES

It's a magical effect: 300 often quirky sculptures hidden away in a 4-hectare wooded valley. There's a fairy-tale or comic feel to much of it – slivers of…

4. Museum of British Surfing

7.43 MILES

Few museums are this cool. Vibrant surfboards and vintage wetsuits line the walls; sepia images catch your eye. The stories are compelling: 18th-century…

5. Braunton Burrows

7.44 MILES

The vast network of dunes here is the UK's largest. Paths wind past sandy hummocks, salt marshes, purple thyme, yellow hawkweed and pyramidal orchids. The…

6. Lyn & Exmoor Museum

12.14 MILES

This sweet museum's collections include chilling pictures of Lynmouth's devastating 1952 flash flood, which claimed 34 lives. It occupies the town's…

7. Cliff Railway

12.24 MILES

This extraordinary piece of Victorian engineering sees two cars, linked by a steel cable, descend and ascend the steeply sloping cliff face according to…

8. Flood Memorial

12.29 MILES

On 16 August 1952 a huge wave of water swept through Lynmouth following torrential rain. The devastation was immense: 34 people lost their lives, and four…