Walloon Brabant, Belgium, Feb 17, 2011 / 23:40 pm
A 15th-century crucifix which survived the Battle of Waterloo has been stolen from a chapel at the site of the battlefield.
The wooden artwork, known as the Hougoumont Christ, miraculously survived a fire with only charred feet during a June 18, 1815 battle at the Château Hougoumont, the site of a pivotal engagement. It is about six feet tall and six feet wide and weighs about 440 lbs.
The crucifix is one of the emblematic symbols of Napoleon Bonaparte’s final battle and was described in Victor Hugo’s famous novel “Les Miserables.”
The battelfield’s curator, Yves Van Der Cruysen, was outraged by the theft.