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Many Iraqis considered it poetic justice when a journalist tossed his shoes at President George W. Bush in 2009 when he was in power.
The bizarre attack later spawned a real life work of art.
A sofa-sized statue of the shoe was unveiled in Tikrit, the hometown of the former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein.
Baghdad-based artist Laith al-Amari described the fiberglass-and-copper work as a tribute to the pride of the Iraqi people.
The statue is inscribed with a poem honoring Muntadhar al-Zeidi, the Iraqi journalist who stunned the world when he whipped off his loafers and hurled them at Bush during a press conference.
In the Arab world, even showing someone the sole of a shoe is considered a sign of disrespect.
Al-Zeidi was charged with assaulting a foreign leader, but his lawyer asked prosecutors to reduce the charges.
The shoe attack spawned a flood of Web quips, satire and even street rallies across the Arab world, where Bush is widely reviled for starting the war in Iraq and backing Israel against the Palestinians.
A Turkish shoemaking company also claimed its sales skyrocketed after some reports said it made the shoes that al-Zeidi tossed at Bush.
