A bronze sculpture by artist Anne Curry was stolen from her garden in Saffron Walden, raising concerns about art theft in the area
Saffron Walden: So, there’s been a pretty shocking incident in Arkesden. Anne Curry, a well-known artist, had her bronze sculpture, La Promesse, stolen right from her garden. It’s a hefty piece, weighing about 350kg, and it went missing overnight between December 5 and 6, 2024.
The police say the sculpture is worth around £20,000 to make, but it could sell for up to £60,000. Sadly, no arrests have been made yet. Anne, who’s 82, is famous for her garden sculptures and even made a bust of Sir John Major for the House of Commons. She reported the theft to the police as soon as she found out.
Anne described the situation as “unbelievable” and “extraordinary.” She had been away for a funeral and came back to find her sculpture gone. It’s clear it happened while she was away.
She suspects the thief had scoped out the place before. Anne has about 15 to 20 sculptures in her garden, mostly made of resin because they’re safer from theft. But this bronze piece was targeted, and she thinks the thief knocked on the sculptures to find out which one was bronze.
She explained that bronze sculptures aren’t stolen for their beauty but for the metal itself. Thieves often sell the bronze to scrap merchants, which makes it a hot item.
PC Glenn Simons, who’s on the case, said he understands how much this theft has affected Anne. He’s urging anyone who saw anything suspicious in the Arkesden area on the night of December 5 to come forward.
If you have any info, you can call the police at 101 and mention the investigation reference 42/183678/24.
