Police Scotland helps recover 400-year-old book of sermons belonging to the Catholic Church in Scotland

Police Scotland officers have worked with Italian and Dutch counterparts to recover a 400-year-old book which was illicitly removed from the collection of the Catholic Church in Scotland.

The book of sermons by Cardinal Bellerine, which dates back to 1605, was gifted to the church in Glasgow in the early 1900s but it is unknown when it was removed from the collection. It came to the attention of officers while for sale on a Dutch website in September 2020 before being sold to a buyer in Italy. It is against Canon law to alienate property of the church so the book was seized by officers from the Carabinieri.

During investigations it was discovered a priest had gifted the book to the Archdiocese in Glasgow.

It was formally resituated to the Scots College in Rome in April before being brought back to Scotland.

Detective Sergeant Billy Telford, Scottish Heritage Crime Group, said: “This is a fantastic result for the church and for all the officers involved in the investigation.

“It was an extremely interesting case to work on, tracing the book back to its roots here in Scotland. We don’t know how it came to be for sale online but it’s now back where it belongs with a fascinating story of its journey.”