CHEPSTOW'S famous naked Boatman sculpture has been subjected to a graffiti attack.

Silver paint has been sprayed on the seated statue in the medieval border town's Bank Square with the colour concentrated on a key feature of the seafarer.

The Boatman has been a focal point for visitors to the town over the past two decades with expectant couples reportedly touching the bronze figure for fertility.

However, when first erected, the figure came in for criticism from some, with one resident branding it an "insult to fishermen". 

A local resident who spotted the vandalism said: "It's a targeted graffiti attack on the bronze with silver paint sprayed on his head, his eyes, a 'V' sprayed on the man's face, dots on his chest and a jolly good old spray on his genitals.

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"It's the first time I've been into town for a while.

"I'd just popped to WH Smiths to get my Argus when I saw the graffiti. It's a pretty poor show really.

"It may be some kind of political or prudish demonstration, who knows, there are so many on the go currently.

"I do hope Chepstow Town Council get The Boatman cleaned up soon. The vandalism just makes Chepstow's closed to traffic High Street, which is already pretty gloomy and depressing, look even sadder."

This is not the first time The Boatman, who has sat proudly in the centre of Chepstow since 2004, has been the target of vandals.

The statue, erected after artist Andre Wallace won a competition as part of a major £2m regeneration of the town, was hit in a paint attack in July 2012.

Then the graffiti, which also appeared on the Chepstow's historic arch and the OAP Palmer Centre, was said to have put the town's chance of lifting the prestigious Best Small Town Category in the Wales in Bloom competition in jeopardy.