Giant rubber duck bids Beijing adieu after bringing in over HK$127m

The floating sculpture was a huge money maker for the city and drew thousands of visitors

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The rubber duck (and its smaller toy counterparts) was an especially big hit with children. Photo: Chinanews.com

Published: 8:15pm, 28 Oct 2013Updated: 2:47pm, 29 Oct 2013

The giant rubber duck that enchanted audiences at Beijing’s Summer Palace for the last two months made its official exit on October 27 after bringing the city more than 100 million yuan (HK$ 127 million) in revenue.

Nearly 70,000 visitors appeared on the day to bid goodbye to the duck, which began its deflation around 6 PM, Chinese news portal Morning Post reported.

Officials estimated that nearly 70,000 visitors appeared at the Summer Palace to say goodbye to the duck. Photo: Chinanews.com

Among the visitors saying farewell were numerous schoolchildren, who were reportedly very dismayed to see their large yellow friend deflated.

“I did not expect to learn that today was the duck’s last day,” a concerned mother surnamed Wu told reporters. “[As soon as] my daughter took a look at the deflated duck she started to cry.”

Workers at Beijing’s Summer Palace confirmed that deflation of the duck would be an overnight process, and removing the base surrounding the duck was “not as easy as it looked” and would take the longest amount of time.

Many were dismayed to see the duck deflated. Photo: Screenshot via Morning Post

The 18-metre-tall rubber duck has been a tremendous moneymaker for Beijing, and has helped the Summer Palace bring in over 100 million yuan through visitor fees and the selling of duck-related products, Xinhua reported.