A medieval Virgin and Child that survived the ravages of the Reformation has returned to England for the first time in 600 years.
The alabaster statue, thought to have been made around 1350 in the Midlands, is hailed as a masterpiece and is now on display at the British Museum.
Historian Tom Holland described it as “a haunting glimpse of what we lost”.
Lloyd de Beer, co-curator of the medieval collection at the museum, told the Guardian: “When you look at an object like this and think what it has endured, it is so moving. If the British Museum exists for nothing else, it exists for this.”
The history of the statue is uncertain. For many years it was kept at a Benedictine monastery in St-Truiden, Belgium. It is unclear if it had been purchased before the Reformation or smuggled out during it. Officials at the British Museum suggest the former is more likely.
The abbey was suppressed and plundered by French Revolutionary forces in 1794 but the statue somehow survived.
It was exhibited in Brussels 70 years later and has been in the hands of private collectors ever since.
De Beer said: “We have placed the new statue in a gallery next to the South Cerney head and foot, broken from another statue, so that visitors can see what happened to most of these works.
“It also stands near a French Virgin and Child in ivory, so we can show it is just as sophisticated a piece. English alabaster sculpture has had a bad rap until now, because there was an element of mass production to some of the later work. Here, though, we can see the skill of a real work of art.”
Having been unable to sell in churches for well over a year due to the pandemic, we are now inviting readers to support the Herald by investing in our future. We have been a bold and influential voice in the church since 1888, standing up for traditional Catholic culture and values.
Please join us on our 130 year mission by supporting us. We are raising £250,000 to safeguard the Herald as a world-leading voice in Catholic journalism and teaching. For more information from our chairman on contributing to the Herald Patron's Fund, click here
Make a Donation
Donors giving £500 or more will automatically become sponsor patrons of the Herald. This includes two complimentary print/digital gift subscriptions, invitations to Patron events, pilgrimages and dinners, and 6 gift subscriptions sent to priests, seminaries, Catholic schools, religious care homes and prison and university chaplaincies. Click here for more information on becoming a Patron Sponsor. Click here for more information about contributing to the Herald Patron's Fund