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| Stolen framed prayers for the Crypt of Emperor NAPOLEON III |
Benedictine Abbey of St. Michael’s in Farnborough
Stolen framed prayers
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Master
wood-carver Patrick Damiaens from Maaseik (Belgium) has been chosen to make three unique wooden
prayer frames for Farnborough Abbey in England.
By Denzil Walton for Flanders today 04-03-2015
A little over a year ago – between the 16th
and 20th February, 2014 – the Benedictine Abbey of St. Michael’s in
Farnborough, Hampshire, England received some visitors.
There was nothing unusual in this. Every
year, thousands of people visit this magnificent 19th century abbey when
it opens its doors to the public every Saturday afternoon.
Unfortunately, these particular visitors didn’t
queue up at the abbey shop and pay their £3 for the one-hour guided tour. They
broke into the abbey under cover of darkness, entered the crypt and stole
historic framed prayers in French and Latin from the tomb of Prince Louis, son
of Napoleon III (nephew of Napoleon Bonaparte).
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| Benedictine Abbey of St. Michael’s in Farnborough |
Prince
Imperial
Prince Napoléon Eugène Louis Jean Joseph
Bonaparte (16 March 1856 – 1 June 1879) was the only child of Emperor Napoleon
III of France. He died aged 23 while fighting for the British Army under Lord
Chelmsford in the Zulu War in South Africa. He met a horrendous death,
suffering 18 assegai spear wounds and a mutilated face.
When his body was retrieved from the
battlefield a number of handwritten prayers were found in his wallet. These
were returned to his mother, the Empress Eugénie, who had them engraved and
mounted on specially commissioned wooden prayer frames. These were placed in
the family’s crypt in Farnborough Abbey. Until their theft, they were used regularly
by monks during mass.
Replacements
necessary
Despite all the efforts of local police and
an international appeal amongst antique dealers, the prayer frames were not
retrieved, so thoughts turned to their replacement.
“The prayer frames had been carved by an
unknown wood-carver in incredible detail. Finding someone to make exact
replicas was always going to be a difficult task,” said Abbott David Cuthbert
Brogan. “However, after making some initial enquiries we came upon the internet
site of Patrick Damiaens from Belgium. After seeing pictures of what he is
capable of carving, and in particular the highly-detailed and delicate floral
designs of which Patrick is such a master, we knew we had found someone capable
of equalling, or maybe even exceeding, the work of the original craftsman.”
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| One of the stolen framed Prayers, Crypt Napoleon III |
A
challenge to rise to
Following discussions over capabilities,
timing and costs, the job was given to Damiaens. “It was a great honour to be
asked to carve replicas of these beautiful prayer frames,” he remarks. “I was
also very excited about the challenge involved, as the level of intricacy and
detail in the originals is exceptional. For much of the time I will be carving
under a powerful magnifying glass!”
It’s a challenge he is keen to meet,
explaining that he is always looking for jobs that push his techniques to the
limit and force him to develop new skills. He will spend some time in museums
in Paris acquainting himself more fully with original carvings done in the very
ornate Napoleon III style. This includes detailed acanthus leaves, small satyrs
and the emblems of the emperor.
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| Napoleon III |
Made
from French walnut
The original prayer frames were made of
walnut, as will the replacements. “Walnut is ideal for this type of job, thanks
to its very fine grain,” Damiaens explains. He has already started working with
his preferred furniture maker and has selected some ideal cuts of French walnut.
The furniture-maker will make the frames and pass them onto Damiaens to carve. The
largest of the three frames measures sixty by eighty centimetres.
Damiaens will be working from photographs
of the originals. From these he will make his own technical illustrations,
which will form the basis of his carvings. When the prayer frames are completed,
he hopes to travel to Farnborough for their official unveiling in 2016.
