HALIFAX – Irreplaceable is how the University of King’s College Chapel is describing a 19th-century altar cross that has gone missing.
The brass cross disappeared from during the Natal Day long weekend and chapel members now fear it has been stolen.
“It means that we lose a big part of our history and our tradition. It helps to define what the chapel is,” said Father Gary Thorne, chaplain at the university.
The cross was last seen on Aug. 2 during a wedding and by Monday, it was missing.
Since then, a report has been filed with the Halifax Regional Police and students are putting up posters throughout the city.
They’re also calling pawn shops and antiques dealers in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Quebec.
The foot-high cross pre-dates the current University of King’s College campus. It was a part of the chapel at the school’s former site in Windsor, N.S., before it was ravaged by fire in 1920.
Will Barton, the chapel’s sacristan, says the cross is not only an important part of their history, it also plays a significant role in their faith.
“It’s really just a chunk of brass with some glass bits on it and a shiny red plate. Materially, it’s not worth much at all,” he said.
“Its true value is in its symbolism and in its home here at the chapel where it has been for nearly a hundred years.”
The chaplain is offering a $200 reward for the cross’s return.
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