The statue of 'Our Lady' of Penrhys

The original statue at Penrhys was said to be 'indescribably beautiful', and contained 'Mary nursing Jesus for a kiss'. Much smaller that the statue that currently resides at Penrhys it was thought to have originally been placed in an alcove at the small well chapel. Legends tell that the original statue was a gift from heaven, which miraculously appeared in the branches of an oak tree at the site. The statue, it is said, resisted all attempts to move it from the tree so that, 'eight oxen could not have drawn the Image of Penrhys from its place in the tree'. The statue only allowed itself to be moved when a shrine and chapel were built to house it. The original statue survived at Penrhys until the 1500's, and Henry Viii's dissolution of the monasteries. At this time Bishop Latimer wrote to Thomas Cromwell suggesting the destruction of a number of Shrines of Our Lady, believing them to be a focus of idolatry, and thus 'the devil's instrument'. The statue at Penrhys at this time was obviously an important one as it, alongside others such as the one at Walsingham and Ipswich, was mentioned by name in this letter

Thus it is said the statue was removed from the shrine secretly at the dead of night to prevent any local unrest. From here it said the statue was removed to Thomas Cromwell's home in London, and after being thrown from the West window of St. Paul's by Bishop Latimer, it along with many other images of Mary was burned publicly.
When Ferndale church was built a Miss M.M. Davies of Llantrisant procured for the church a replica of the original statue, carved in oak standing in a tree trunk.
The statue that currently stands on the hillside at Penrhys was erected in 1953, and blessed by Archbishop McGrath on the 2nd July that year. The statue was carved out of Portland stone and designed, using the many description of the original statue contained in medieval welsh poetry, to resemble the original as closely as possible.