Stolen religious paintings found on wasteland in Co Offaly

Six Evie Hone paintings stolen from a church in Co Galway nearly three years ago, have been found on waste ground near Edenderry, Co Offaly.

The six oil paintings, part of a set of 14 covering the Stations of the Cross, were taken in a burglary at the Church of St Peter & St Paul, Kiltullagh, near Athenry, in June 2013.

Each of the oil paintings is about three feet by four feet and all were in a wooden frames when they were taken from the side walls of the church. At the time parish priest Fr Martin McNamara said the 3rd, 4th, 5th, 10th, 11th and 12th stations had been removed. The remaining eight paintings were not taken.

The as they were known had been hanging in Kiltullagh Church since 1945 having been commissioned and donated by a local benefactor.

Hone, who had a studio at Marlay in Rathfarnham is better known for her stained glass, much of which was also commissioned for churches. In 2012 preliminary sketches Hone had worked up prior to painting the Stations, achieved more than €40,000 at auction.

Her most important works include the East Window for the Chapel at Eton College, Windsor and My Four Green Fields, now located in Government Buildings in Dublin. They were commissioned for the Government’s Pavilion at the 1939 New York World’s Fair.

Following the theft, the remaining eight paintings were removed from the church for safe keeping. Attempts to contact Fr McNamara on Wednesday morning were not successful.

Gardaí said the discovery of the missing paintings was made on Tuesday. The paintings were found in good condition and were taken to Tullamore Garda station for forensic and technical examination.

The recovered paintings were understood to be without their wooden frames and their good condition would indicate they had not been exposed to the elements for long periods. They would however have been difficult to sell, being clearly identifiable and known to be part of a series.

No one was arrested and enquiries are ongoing.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Tullamore Garda station 057-9327600, Galway Garda station 091-538000 or the Garda Confidential Line 1800 666 111.