London: A memorial to Karl Marx at the cemetery in north London where the 19th century political philosopher is buried has been defaced for the second time in less than a fortnight - this time with red paint.

Earlier this month, the monument in Highgate cemetery, which is among British structures listed as being of exceptional historical interest, was damaged with a hammer.

Pictures posted on Twitter by the cemetery on Saturday showed the marble gravestone daubed with political slogans.

"Senseless, stupid, Ignorant," the cemetery said. "Whatever you think about Marx's legacy, this is not the way to make the point."

A plaque within the gravestone, bearing epitaphs to Marx, his wife and grandson, which was the object of the earlier hammer attack, was also daubed with red paint.

The German revolutionary socialist, author of "Das Kapital" and co-author of the "Communist Manifesto", lived in London from 1849 until his death in 1883.

His memorial has been attacked in the past with paint, and in 1970 an attempt was made to destroy it with a bomb.

The incident was the latest attack on memorials of historic interest in London.

Paint was splashed on a statue of wartime Prime Minister Winston Churchill last month and on a sculpture commemorating the Royal Air Force's Bomber Command in London's Green Park.