SIf she appears in Lourdes, the Virgin tends to disappear in Hontanx. This small town in the South-East of the Landes, at the gates of the Gers, woke up at the start of the week with one less resident: the Holy Virgin. The immaculate statue has disappeared from its base, on which it had been placed since 1893. “It was a hiker who came to see me at the town hall, Monday, November 25 in the morning, to ask me if it had been removed to repaint it. . I admit that I was surprised,” assures Jean-Louis Dejean, mayor of the town since 2020.
The phone call made to Boris Langlade, whose association Les Eaux vives is responsible for the restoration of all the small municipal heritage, and a second to the owner of the plot where the Virgin is located confirms his fears: no one knows how she vanished. And the mystery begins.
Vandalism or theft?
“But why did they go and steal that! » Chokes Frédéric Blondeau. The winegrower and producer of Armagnac [le domaine de Lassaubatju, NDLR]whose family is one of the oldest in the village, is the owner of the land and the statue. “This Virgin was erected during a return from a mission in 1893. It was financed by my family and has never moved since. Moreover, it has become a landmark for all motorists in the area. »
“The statue measures 1.50 m and weighs more than 100 kg. She wasn't kidnapped at random, it was organized! »
The Hontanois – who filed a complaint with the Villeneuve-de-Marsan gendarmerie this Tuesday, November 26 – wonders. He rules out the hypothesis of vandalism because “I would have found pieces on the ground – there, everything was done properly”. But leans towards that of theft. “The statue measures 1.50 m and weighs more than 100 kg. She wasn't kidnapped at random, it was organized! There must have been some scouting,” he believes.
The base where the statue of the Virgin was previously located.
Philippe Salvat / SO
A jackpot if…
In the village of 600 souls, stronghold of MP Boris Vallaud, this disappearance is commented on. “Residents talk about it a lot. And above all they don't understand why we are attacking this statue. When I noticed this disappearance, I quickly went to see a second Virgin who is located a little further away but who, fortunately, had not disappeared,” breathes Jean-Louis Dejean.
On Facebook, where the owner posted a publication, the comments are rife: “shameful! “, “but what world do we live in? », “seeing this empty base saddens me, it is a despicable gesture”… “I decided to talk about this affair because we are tired of not making waves”, confirms Frédéric Blondeau.
The gendarmerie, who came to make observations on site and inquired about possible similar cases in the area, are now leading the investigation. The matter is also taken seriously by the military, because thefts of religious objects are recurrent in France. And by the mayor too. “If we find her, so much the better. Otherwise, with the town hall, the owner and the residents, we will launch a fundraiser to rebuild a statue and ensure that it finds its rightful place. » In the meantime, all that remains is to invoke Saint Anthony of Padua…
