CHURCH HOPES MODERN METHODS WILL FIND STOLEN STONEWORK
A small but stunning Herefordshire church is going all out to recover a child’s medieval stone burial slab after discovering it had been stolen from their building. St Mary’s Church at Foy, a gradeI listed building, has a remote riverside setting in South Herefordshire but this has not stopped the local Churchwarden from mounting a very modern campaign to find it.
As soon as the theft was discovered and reported to the police, Andrew Netting who lives next door to the church, had a picture and description circulating to everyone he knew. He included some of the heritage organisations and the Diocese of Hereford central office, who alerted local press. The stone measures 51cm. in length and tapers from 35cm to 29cm wide being 8.5cm thick.
“Like many churches in this area the entire contents of St.Mary’s has been described in detail, photographed and measured as well as being marked with SmartWater, the DNA forensic tracing system, which will have soaked well into the stonework,” said Andrew. SmartWater is made of robust metal-based inert chemicals. The forensic code within SmartWater can withstand direct, long-term exposure to sunlight, UV and bleaching, making it the perfect tool for church use.
Having taken what security measures it can, the church is open and visitors who wander off the beaten track are treated to an historic building in a stunning setting with lots of historic features. The village came to public attention when politician Peter Mandelson included it in his title on being made a peer. He is Baron Mandelson of Foy in the county of Herefordshire (and Hartlepool in the county of Durham). It is believed he owned a house in the area.
The theft has been Twittered, it is on Facebook and on the front page of the Diocesan website. “We may have historic buildings but we hope 21st century methods will ensure we find it and return it to St Mary’s,” said Anni Holden, Spokeswoman for the Diocese. “It has been there since the 13th Century, so we are quite sure it is the right place for it. I am asking the person who removed it to put it back as soon as possible.”
Note to Editors: The theft was discovered on 10th January, reported to the police and listed by them at 1pm and the information and picture of the burial slab was circulating on the web and social media sites immediately after that.
Any person who has any information should contact Hereford Police on the control room number which is 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111. Hopefully with the detailed description, photographs and tracing system it will make the piece unsalable and it will soon be recovered.
www.stmarysfoy.co.uk
A Jpeg picture of the burial slab is available from Anni Holden below.