This is the design for the £48,000 bronze ox sculpture likely to grace the junction next to Oxford railway station.

The statue, which will be 1.5m high and 2.3m long, is planned to go up outside the Said Business School, in Park End Street.

Earlier this year, Oxfordshire County Council linked up with the business school and agreed to provide a work of art.

Now a planning application for the statue by its creator Olivia Musgrave will be considered by city councillors on Wednesday, October 10.

The Oxford Mail asked the public who or what should be chosen as the statue. We were inundated with suggestions.

Conservative councillor Keith Mitchell, leader of Oxfordshire County Council, suggested that a statue of former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher should stand on a plinth outside the station.

However, the former Tory leader may not have wanted to be permanently remembered in Oxford.

Although she studied chemistry at Somerville College, her relationship with the city soured in 1985 when university dons broke with tradition by not awarding her the honorary degree that had been given to every Oxford-educated Prime Minister since 1945.

Other favourites for the statue included oarsman Sir Steve Redgrave, Lord Nuffield and Diana, Princess of Wales. But a statue of an ox crossing a river has been selected, depicting the origins of the city's name.

Tony Joyce, the chairman of Oxford Civic Society, said it was better to choose a statue of an ox, instead of a famous politician like Margaret Thatcher, or another celebrity.

"Some of the colleges have embellished their buildings with superb examples of modern sculpture but there aren't too many in the city, so I hope this will be a good addition," he said

"I fully approve of the council policy of trying to encourage new buildings to incorporate modern art."

City council planning officer Christine Belcher said: "An application has now been submitted for the statue, which will be situated next to a side entrance of the business school, facing the station.

"This will be one of the first things people see when they step off a train at Oxford station.

"The ox is on a square base and there is a wavy design beneath it to signify flowing water."

Hugh Bullock, who is handling the application for the business school, was not available for comment.

It was first thought that the statue could be erected in the middle of Station Junction itself, but in the planning application, it is situated outside the business school.