This Lent season, we will display a new sculpture by local artist, Steve Jones. The Crown of Thorns, made from stainless-steel, will hang above the Nave altar, under the Cathedral Tower from Monday 20 March.

The crown is a temporary seasonal display, which will hang in the Cathedral until mid-April. It consists of stainless-steel rods and blade-like “thorns” arranged in an irregular circle 3m in diameter. The upward facing thorns are gilded with pure gold leaf. The sculpture weighs 64 kg and will be lifted into place by winches.  From Easter Day, the crown will be adorned with flowers as a meditation on Jesus’ death to joyful celebration of his resurrection.

“The motivation for the Crown of Thorns came as a result of an earlier sculpture which I made for our former parish Church near Cambridge.” Said Steve Jones. “This was a fairly small affair but was welcomed by the congregation. After we moved to Bury, it occurred to me that a Crown might be worth offering to the Cathedral and they agreed! Of course, the Cathedral is a much bigger space, providing not only a challenge of size, but also design if the Crown was to be visible from the end of the Nave.”

The Rev’d Canon Philip Banks, Canon Precentor at St Edmundsbury Cathedral said, “We’re honoured to receive such an impressive piece of artwork from Steve, who has spent many hours creating this in his workshop. We look forward to the Crown of Thorns being a focal point in the Cathedral during Lent and Eastertide and invite the local community to come and view it while it’s on display.”