A bronze sculpture worth £60,000 has been stolen from the garden of a world-renowned artist.
The artwork, known as La Promesse, was taken from Anne Curry’s home in Saffron Walden, Essex, between 5 and 6 December while she was at a funeral.
The imposing bronze sculpture of an iris flower weighs about 350kg and is one of Curry’s most successful works.
Essex Police has urged anyone who may have information about any suspicious vehicles or suspicious behaviour in the Arkesden area on the evening of December 5 and the early hours of December 6 to get in touch.
Curry, who is famous for her garden sculptures and portraits, including a bronze bust of Sir John Major that she made for the House of Commons, said the theft was “unbelievable”.
“I had been away for the day because of a funeral in Warwick and I returned in the evening to see the sculpture had gone. It had obviously happened in the night,” she said.
The 82-year-old said she believed the thief had visited her home before to choose which sculpture to target.
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“I have 15 to 20 sculptures in this garden, and almost all of them are resins because it’s safer for theft, and it’s safer to transport,” she said.
“The person who stole that one had been in the garden and systematically knocked on the sculptures to see which one was in bronze.”
La Promesse cost £20,000 to cast and has a market value of £60,000.
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Curry has criticised the police for taking three weeks to visit her home following the theft, saying she was “upset” at the lack of progress in the investigation.
“What people do not realise is that a bronze sculpture is not stolen for its beauty, it is stolen for the bronze which is taken immediately to a scrap merchant, cut up, and sold up, because the bronze is very valuable,” she said.
“When something like this is happening, the police need to be on it quickly.”
An Essex Police spokesperson said officers had made “four efforts to contact Dr Curry to arrange a visit throughout December, which had unfortunately gone unanswered”.
