DETROIT - The unveiling event planned for a nine-foot, one-ton bronze statue of a satanic symbol will be held in July.

Jex Blackmore, director of the Satanic Temple of Detroit, said Wednesday that the ceremonial July 25 event has not been cancelled, as MLive reported Tuesday.

"The Unveiling" has just been moved.

Blackmore said The Satanic Temple of Detroit has yet to announce the new location for the event, which was originally to be held at Bert's Warehouse in Eastern Market.

Bert's reportedly backed out of the event because customers weren't thrilled with the idea of the restaurant hosting the unveiling.

The statue, photographs of which can be seen on the Satanic Temple of Detroit's website, depicts the satanic symbol Baphomet, seated, with the winged body of a man, head and feet of an animal and a right hand raised holding up two fingers, a gesture similar to one seen in many iconographic images of Christianity's Jesus Christ.

According to Blackmore, Baphomet carries the message of "a reconciliation of opposites," as there are many depicted in the statue.

"That's part of the reason that it can only exist standing next to the Ten Commandments," she said in an email. "That's part of the message. We wouldn't want to proselytize as a single voice in the public square."

Blackmore said she cannot confirm or deny where the statue will be displayed once unveiled, be that public or private property.

For now, the actual unveiling of the statue is proving to be a challenge. Blackmore said The Satanic Temple of Detroit has received an "overwhelming amount of support from several local venues."

Some of those venues, though, receive "threats" once they open their doors to the temple.

"It appears that the religious community acts as bullies when faced with the concept of free expression and religious diversity," Blackmore said.

Though Blackmore wouldn't say where the temple plans to put the statue once it's unveiled, she didn't appear to be worried about the statue being vandalized.

"Almost as soon as the press started talking about our monument proposal, we started receiving poorly written, half-cohered emails from incensed radicals swearing to dedicate themselves to the destruction of our monument...I wouldn't expect these outraged and nearly insensible reactionaries to actually know how to assault a bronze monument without severely hurting themselves in the process.

"In any case, we've created a mould of the sculpture, and subsequent production will be considerably cheaper than production of the original. We have an excellent insurance policy."

According to the website, the unveiling event "will serve as a call-to-arms from which The Satanic Temple will kick off our largest fight to date in the name of individual rights to free exercise against self-serving theocrats."

The invitations welcomes guests, at the cost of $25, to experience history in the making.

VIP ticket holders will have the chance to be photographed seated on the statue.

Photography at the event is prohibited, according to the website.

As far as the backlash received from the religious and others, Blackmore said that's their right.

"The moment that religious organizers demanded that the event be canceled, and then proceeded to use their access to power to distort the intent of the organizers and antagonize local venues, they violate notions of religious tolerance," she said in an email.

Blackmore said she's disgraced that local religious leaders would hold a press conference and act against the temple without first reaching out to them to gain insight into the organization.

The Baphomet statue was originally made to sit next to the Ten Commandments monument at the Oklahoma State Capitol.

Over the winter, the temple put up a "Snaketivity" display at the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing.

Ian Thibodeau is the business and development reporter for MLive Media Group in Detroit. He can be reached at ithibode@mlive.com, or follow him on Twitter.