Sculpture by Jacob Lipchitz (Lithuanian)
NM2824 : Cloisters of Abbey on the Isle of Iona 'The Descent of the Spirit'.
Inscription on the reverse of the sculpture reads:
I, Jacob Lipchitz, a Jew faithful to the faith of my fathers, have made this Virgin for a good understanding among all the people of the earth. That the spirit may reign.'
Gifted to Trustees of Iona Abbey in 1956, there are two more copies of the original bronze, one in Assy, France, the other in New Harmony, Indiana, USA. It made a journey of 43,370 miles from New York to Iona, between 14 Dec 1957 and 25 Dec 1958!!