A ‘blasphemous’ sculpture of the Virgin Mary showing her with her legs spread open as she gives birth to Jesus has been beheaded in an Austrian cathedral.
The artwork showed Mary sitting on a rock, her robes around her waist and her legs wide apart, as she gazed heavenward with a halo around her head.
The sculpture, on show in St Mary’s Cathedral in Linz, was designed by artist Esther Strauss and carved by Theresa Limberger.
Diocese officials announced the beheading on 1st July but said they had no clue who the attacker was.
The work has previously been condemned as blasphemous by Catholic traditionalists who say Church leaders had ignored pleas to take it down.
A statement said to be from the unidentified vandals said: “Therefore, in view of this abominable and blasphemous caricature, urgent and decisive action was required.”
But the attack has appalled the statue’s creators.
Carver Limberger, who spent 200 hours crafting the statue, said: “The intolerance, backwardness and lack of enlightenment in the Catholic Church is frightening.
“I was prepared for verbal statements. However, I would not have expected that the work that I spent so much time on would be destroyed.”
Sculptor Strauss said in a statement obtained by Newsflash: “Most portraits of the Virgin Mary were made by men and have, therefore, often served patriarchal interests.
“Whoever removed the head from the sculpture was very brutal.
“For me, this violence is an expression of the fact that there are still people who question women’s right to their own bodies. We have to take a very firm stance against this.”
Despite the damage, the statue, minus the head, will remain on display for the full duration of the exhibition.
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Story By: Joseph Golder, Sub-Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Newsflash
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