Bucharest, August 16, 2024
Photo: basilica.ro
Several items seized from a Bucharest church by communist authorities nearly 50 years ago were recently returned to their rightful home.
Fr. Emil-Nedelea Cărămizaru, the rector of New St. George Church, announced that several valuable items have been recovered from the National Art Museum:
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Chalice decorated with seraphim (circa 1750)
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Processional cross decorated with scenes of the Crucifixion and Resurrection of the Lord (1816)
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Prosphora seal with saints and the coat of arms of Wallachia (circa 1720)
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2 liturgicla fans donated by ruler St. Constantin Brâncoveanu to the church in 1709.
Photo: basilica.ro These items had been confiscated by the communist authorities in 1978. The rector at the time, Fr. Gheorge Didicescu, precisely recorded which items were seized, writing: “I surrender these valuables against my conscience.” The process of returning the items lasted nearly six years.
The items will be kept in a secure museum display case in the nave of the church, next to the tomb of the Holy Brâncoveanu Martyrs, as a gesture of gratitude for their sacrifice, on the 310th anniversary of their martyrdom.
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