Catholic Communications, Sydney Archdiocese,
14 Jan 2013
14 Jan 2013
Statues of Moses, St Mary Magdalene and the Apostles are now on display at St Mary's Cathedral
The specially-commissioned hand-carved and painted statues of the Apostles, Mary Magdalene, St Paul and the two great Prophets, Elijah and Moses are now on display in the Lady Chapel of St Mary's Cathedral.
The statues have been made possible thanks to the big-hearted generosity of 14 members of the Friends of St Mary's Cathedral together with a contribution from the Australian Catholic University as well as one from Damian Fogarty of LEDsafe, who provided the funds for the statue of St John the Baptist and who also provides the lighting for the Cathedral's much loved Outdoor Nativity each year.
The arrival of the statues which were created by the sculptors, carvers and painters at Talleres de Arte Granda, Spain's renowned ecclesiastical workshop, signals the realisation after more than 133 years of architect William Wardell's original vision for the high altar of St Mary's Cathedral.
"The 17 niches on the reredos behind the High Altar were always meant to be filled with statues," explains Father Paul Hilder, Dean of the Cathedral. "But other than the central niche, which contains a statue of Our Lady Help of Christians and dates back to the time of Wardell and Bishop Polding, the niches on either side have remained empty."
The statue of St John the Baptist (far right) was made possible by a donation from Damian Fogarty of LEDsafe lighting
No one is quite sure why the niches of the reredos behind the High Altar were never filled and one of the legends has it that the statues were ordered but went down with the ship carrying them from Europe to Australia.
Commissioned by the Archbishop of Sydney, Cardinal George Pell and made possible by donations from the Friends of the Cathedral, ACU and Damian Fogarty, the statues were unpacked on Friday last week and put on display in the Lady Chapel to enable Sydneysiders to have a close-up view of these beautiful works of art prior to their installation in the reredos at the end of the month.
Since his arrival in Sydney in 2001, the Cardinal has done much to realise Wardell and Bishop Polding's original vision for the Cathedral as well as instigating ongoing conservation, the repair, cleaning and restoration of both the exterior and interior of St Mary's as well as the renovation and restoration of the Cathedral's paintings, artefacts and sculptures.
Cardinal Pell has also commissioned and overseen some important additions to the Cathedral's collection of treasures including the altar triptych by British master sculptor Nigel Boonham and the superb statue of Australia's first Saint, Mary MacKillop and two of her pupils by Australian sculptor Louis Laumen which stands on the steps of the Cathedral's western transept.
The wooden statues of the Apostles, St Paul, Mary Magdalene, Elijah and Moses will remain in the Lady Chapel until after Australia Day on 27 January. They will then be installed in the ornate reredos behind the High Altar.
SHARED FROM ARCHDIOCESE OF SYDNEY
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