Trinity College, Oxford, is seeking assistance in locating three missing statues that once adorned its historic chapel tower. The statues, each approximately nine feet tall, represent the medieval disciplines of astronomy, geometry, and theology. They formed part of an original quartet alongside a statue symbolizing medicine, which remains on the college grounds.
The appeal emerged after Clare Hopkins, the college archivist, discovered that the statues currently crowning the chapel tower, installed in the early 1820s, were replacements for an earlier set dating back to the 1690s. While the statue representing medicine survives and is now situated in the President’s Garden, the other three have been unaccounted for over two centuries.
Hopkins uncovered this gap in the statues’ history while researching plans to commission new replacements. Her investigation led to the discovery of an 1823 invoice for stonemasonry work and a detailed sketch depicting the original medieval figures. These findings highlighted the longstanding presence and symbolic significance of the statues atop Trinity’s chapel but underscored the mystery surrounding the missing pieces.
The college has issued a public call for information, noting that fragments of historic sculptures are frequently repurposed or relocated, sometimes ending up in private gardens, architectural features, or public spaces far from their original context. Trinity College encourages anyone who may possess or have seen a stone statue or fragment resembling a classical female figure—particularly those dating from the late 17th or early 19th century or connected to Oxford and its environs—to come forward.
The missing statues’ potential recovery would not only fill a notable gap in the college’s documented heritage but could also provide new insights into the craftsmanship and artistic practices of the period. Trinity College officials emphasize the importance of preserving such artifacts, which form an integral part of the institution’s cultural and architectural legacy.