Sacred Heart Statue - Our Lady of Knock Special Listing

Special Listing for M C L.

Sacred Heart Statue - Antique German Freestanding Bisque Porcelain Statue of Christ. Late 1800s - Antique German Porcelain - RS127

Beautiful Irish Religious Statuette -  Statue of Our Lady of Knock - 11" high - by the Knock Pottery - RS141

A beautifully made, antique bisque porcelain statuette of Jesus Christ, The Sacred Heart, from Germany. The statue is freestanding and measures 11.25" or 28.5cm in height, including the plinth and is approx. 3.25" or  9cm wide and 2.25" or 6cm deep. The plinth is rounded but with straight cut sides at the front as if it was to be hexagonal. The back of the plinth is slightly curved and is impressed with the mark 'GERMANY', a pattern number 12662, together with the maker's mark, a stylised capital 'G' with two vertical lines running through having a little flag at each end.  There are some pencil marks under the base.

This statuette has lived most of its life with a local Nun in her room at a convent here in Ireland which has now closed.  A very personal item, the nun donated most of her personal posessions to a Christian Charity when she moved.

This is a humble representation of Jesus Christ; he has lost almost all of the original paintwork having spent so many years in a room with no central heating that would probably have been quite damp. The statuette would also have been well loved and cleaned on a regular basis, and that would have rubbed off the paint too. The decoration was in simple contrast to the white of the porcelain (termed polychrome); the dark red colour of His robe has held on best over the years although it has been subject to some rubbing and flaking. There is no damage to the statue other than the loss of the paintwork. His hands, clearly pierced, are pointing to The Sacred Heart. A lovely artefact, a hand-painted religious figure beloved of those of the Catholic Faith. This is an early original statue, originally very well painted and not a later copy. We have only given the statue a light dust; the porcelain is in completely original, perfect condition.

This antique porcelain statuette is hollow and weighs 0.35kg. The original dark red and gold decoration has faded over the years: the red cloak in particular around the shoulder area. The gold highlights of the Sacred heart, the clasp for His cloak, the belt and the decorative edges to the plinth have all darkened with age and in some places rubbed away. Nevertheless, this is an striking item, beautifully made, with an obviously very original patina. 

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A superbly pretty statuette; in simple lines a creamy white image of Our Lady of Knock. This item was made by the now closed Knock Pottery making a highly collectable item. There is no colour decoration to the figure other than small lines of gold adornment resulting in a very innocent and ethereal look. The base if the statue has been dipped into a green glaze to ground the piece to denote a small mound of irish grass and show its Irish origins in a wonderful yet simple touch. Probably produced in the sixties or seventies.

The story of our Lady of Knock goes as follows:
The evening of Thursday, 21 August 1879, was a very wet night. At about 8 o'clock it was raining as Mary Byrne, who was from the village, was going home with the priest's housekeeper, Mary McLoughlin. Byrne stopped suddenly when she saw the gable of the church. She claimed she saw three life-size figures. She ran home to tell her parents and soon others from the village gathered. The witnesses said they saw an apparition of Our Lady, Saint Joseph and Saint John the Evangelist at the south gable end of the Church of Saint John the Baptist. 

The vision of Mary was described as being beautiful, standing a few feet above the ground. She was described as wearing a white cloak, hanging in full folds and fastened at the neck. She was described as "deep in prayer", with her eyes raised to heaven, her hands raised to the shoulders or a little higher, the palms inclined slightly to the shoulders.

This beautiful mid-century statue stands at 11" or 28cm high, with an oval base diameter of  3" or 7.5 cm. Without any packaging she weighs 600 grammes.  

Your purchase will be carefully packed in recycled wrappings where possible and despatched by An Post or Courier Service. 
   *****THE PRICE INCLUDES TRACKED INTERNATIONAL DELIVERY ******