Regions
Stolen sacred panels back in Cebu

CEBU CITY — The long-lost sacred pulpit panels of the Archdiocesan Shrine of Patrocinio de Maria Santisima in Boljoon town in Cebu are finally home.

Kept by private collectors for decades, four of the six original panels that were stolen have been turned over to the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Cebu during a ceremony at the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral Museum on Thursday.

RECOVERED RELICS The four stolen pulpit panels of the Archdiocesan Shrine of Patrocinio de Maria Santisima in Boljoon are officially returned to the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Cebu on March 13, 2025. Missing since the 1980s, the sacred panels were retrieved after months of negotiations with the National Museum of the Philippines, with efforts still ongoing to recover the final missing piece. PHOTO BY KAISER JAN FUENTES RECOVERED RELICS The four stolen pulpit panels of the Archdiocesan Shrine of Patrocinio de Maria Santisima in Boljoon are officially returned to the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Cebu on March 13, 2025. Missing since the 1980s, the sacred panels were retrieved after months of negotiations with the National Museum of the Philippines, with efforts still ongoing to recover the final missing piece. PHOTO BY KAISER JAN FUENTES
RECOVERED RELICS The four stolen pulpit panels of the Archdiocesan Shrine of Patrocinio de Maria Santisima in Boljoon are officially returned to the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Cebu on March 13, 2025. Missing since the 1980s, the sacred panels were retrieved after months of negotiations with the National Museum of the Philippines, with efforts still ongoing to recover the final missing piece. PHOTO BY KAISER JAN FUENTES