Al Purdy near his home in B.C. The poet died in 2000.

A sculpture of Al Purdy, often referred to as Canada's greatest poet, is finally ready and will be unveiled Tuesday at Queen's Park in Toronto, just steps from the Ontario Legislature.

Purdy, who died in 2000 at the age of 82, was a member of the Order of Canada and a two-time winner of the Governor General's Award for his collections of poetry.

Plans have been in place to honour the acclaimed poet since he died.

In 2001, husband-and-wife sculptors Edwin and Veronica Dam de Nogales of Highgate, Ont., were hired by art philanthropist Scott Griffin and poet Dennis Lee to create a statue.

But the project became mired in arguments over what the sculpture should look like, and then the placement of the object got stuck in Toronto's city hall bureaucracy.

Griffin had insisted the sculpture be placed at Queen's Park, which entailed getting several departments involved.

The businessman — who created the Griffin Poetry Prize — said he was offered other locales but wanted it to be a place where many people would see it.

Griffin, speaking to the Globe and Mail, calls it part of a long-term goal to "reintroduce poetry into the mainstream of our cultural lives."

The sculpture has Purdy sitting on a rock looking contemplative, according to the artists.

It will be unveiled at a ceremony on Tuesday afternoon.