V&A urged to return religious relic to Cork

A politician in Cork is calling on the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) to return an Irish religious relic thought to have been looted by British forces in the 17th Century.

Sean Sherlock, a Labour member of the Irish Parliament, said that he would like the V&A to return the artefact, known as the Mount Keefe Chalice.

Dating from the 16th Century, the chalice is likely to have been looted from a church during the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland in the 17th Century, CorkBeo reported.

The artefact was purchased for £400 by V&A officials in 1929, from an heiress living in Cork, who had purchased it from a dealer.

Sherlock called for a “formal dialogue” with the UK to establish a framework between museums in both countries and discuss the return of the artefact.

“I’d like to see a bilateral process between Ireland and the UK where artefacts and antiquities which are of Irish origin could be returned to us. There are probably thousands of artefacts of Irish origin which should be decolonised,” he said.

“I imagine many artefacts ended up in English possession because they were associated with our colonial past. I certainly would like to see the V&A return the chalice.”

A spokesperson for the V&A said that the museum’s archives don’t include any information suggesting that the chalice might have once been stolen or linking it to British military raids.

“We would welcome the opportunity to explore any new information that comes to light about V&A collections – the Chalice is available for loan to museums in Ireland, which could support further study,” the spokesperson told CorkBeo.