Is There Various Missing Sacred Art in Madeira?

The possible identification of an image missing from the Funchal Cathedral for 460 years raises the question about the existence of other pieces of sacred art with no known whereabouts in Madeira. The presentation, this week, of an image of Our Lady with the Child, which may be the same one that existed on the main altar of the Funchal Cathedral in the 16th century, has brought back to the forefront the question of religious heritage missing in Madeira. The hypothesis was put forward by Francisco António Clode Sousa, director of a service that is not fully specified in the article. The piece in question may represent one of the oldest existing Marian images, possibly dating from the 15th century. This potential discovery reopens the debate about what may have happened over the centuries to other Madeiran sacred art works that are missing.