A nearly five feet high statue of the Virgin Mary was discovered missing from a Wicklow grotto on Monday evening, leaving the local community in shock.
The statue was a central part of the popular Our Lady of Lourdes grotto in the Wicklow town of Kilmacanogue. A number of people may have been involved in removing the life size statue from its pedestal by dragging it down the very steep bank at the grotto.
Curate of Kilmacanogue Fr Hyacinth Nwakuna told the Irish Mirror he was informed on Monday evening the statue of Our Lady was gone. He said: “I went down to the grotto and saw it for myself. It’s gone. I am very surprised and I cannot comprehend it.
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“I don’t know who would take it. It’s just absolutely shocking. We are hoping we get it back in one piece. And we would appeal to whoever took it to bring it back.” Whoever was involved with taking it should “do the right thing and bring it back”, he added.
Since no remains were found at the site, it is believed the statue was intact at the time it was taken. The Virgin Mary was placed at the grotto nearly 100 years ago and it is of huge spiritual value to the parishioners who have been left shocked and stunned at its disappearance.
Local resident Eileen O’Sullivan said she cannot comprehend why or how someone would do this. “It’s really extraordinary,” Ms O’Sullivan said. “The grotto is on a very steep incline so whoever took the statue possibly dragged it down the hill intact. There appears to be a track way where the statue was dragged down.
“It wasn’t taken away to be cleaned or anything and no-one knows what happened. And I don’t know how whoever took it will be able to hide it as it’s over five feet in height.
“The statue of St Bernadette in the grotto was untouched and she is now staring up at an empty pedestal.”
“I am sorry to see that it’s gone as it was part of the parish heritage and the grotto is very spiritual to a lot of parishioners,” Ms O’Sullivan said, adding that her late dad Ambrose would have visited the grotto regularly along with her mum Josephine to say the rosary – just like hundreds of other locals and visitors.
Fr Nwakuna said he has reported the missing statue to local gardai who are investigating it.
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