The beloved Madonna and Child statue of Essen is estimated to have been made around the year 980. It has great significance as the oldest known statue of Our Lady to still exist.

In addition to this, the holy sculpture has a rich and exciting history of its own. Several times over the centuries, it had to be concealed to escape destruction.

The Madonna was first taken into hiding during the Thirty Years war. It was then, in 1634, that the abbess of Essen fled to Cologne, taking with her the beloved statue and the rest of the Cathedral Treasure. The Essen Treasure remained in Cologne till the end of the war, 14 years later. During that time, the Golden Madonna and another holy artwork of the treasury were carried in multiple processions. These sacred images were more beloved by the people of Cologne than the treasures of their own cathedral.

After the war, the Madonna was safe in her Essen Cathedral for over a hundred years until 1794, and the arrival of the French Revolutionary army. The statue was removed again, brought a short distance to the town of Steele, and tucked away in an orphanage.

In 1803, Essen Abbey was confiscated by the government, along with several other abbeys. Thus the statue was placed under the care of St. Johannes parish, which was allowed to use the old abbey church as its own church. For its safety, the statue spent most of this time locked in the treasury. It was rarely permitted to be viewed even by art historians.

In 1920, during the aftermath of World War I, the Madonna and entirety of the Essen Treasure had to be relocated yet again. The parish authorities feared that their church was no longer a safe place for it.

A goldsmith from Aachen was chosen to determine where to conceal the statue. He arranged that only he and one other guardian would know of this place. Church authorities were aware of the general plan. But for maximum security, only these two people knew the exact location. They carried out this plan so perfectly that to this day, no one knows exactly where the statue was concealed during that time. It was carried inconspicuously in shabby briefcases, and hidden somewhere in the Diocese of Hildesheim.

The treasure was returned after 5 years, when it was deemed safe. During the summer of 1925, the goldsmith and his son took the sacred treasure from its hiding place. They carefully concealed it as hand luggage on the journey back to Essen.

Then came World War II. The Essen treasure was moved first to Warstein, and after that to Schloss Albrechtsburg in Saxony. Last of all, it was hidden in Siegen, in an air-raid shelter.

Essen Cathedral suffered major damage from air raids. Thus the Madonna traveled again. But this time, instead of being hidden for safety, this ancient, sacred heritage was put on display for the world to admire. It was taken first of all to the Hessian State Museum in Marburg, Germany. Then it was brought to Schloss Dyck, a German castle that officially became a tourist attraction at the close of the 20th century.

In 1949, the statue was displayed in exhibitions in Brussels and Amsterdam. After that, the Golden Madonna was at long last brought back to Essen, awaiting the reconstruction of the damaged cathedral. Until the new cathedral was completed, the Essen treasure was kept safely in the vault of the city’s savings bank.

In 1958, the cathedral’s repairs were complete! Since then, the Golden Madonna and Child have remained enshrined, back home in their beloved Essen.

This precious statue survived decay and wars for over a thousand years. What a touching reminder that, through good times and bad, our Heavenly Mother and Her Divine Son will always be here for us.