Police hunt thief who took heart of St Laurence O'Toole, which was kept in a wooden container at Christ Church Cathedral

This article is more than 8 years old

This article is more than 8 years old

Irish police are hunting for a thief who stole the heart of a saint.

The burglar sneaked into Christ Church Cathedral in Dublin on Friday night and ignored valuable gold chalices and candlesticks, choosing instead to take the preserved heart of Laurence O'Toole, the city's 12th-century patron saint.

A cathedral spokesman said the thief would have needed a metal cutter to remove the heart, which was kept in a wooden reliquary inside a box with iron bars.

No alarm was triggered and there was no sign of a break-in, said the spokesman, adding that three valuable gold chalices and gold candlesticks in the chapel were not stolen.

"It's completely bizarre. They didn't touch anything else. They specifically targeted this, they wanted the heart of St Laurence O'Toole," the spokesman said.

The dean of the cathedral, the Most Rev Dermot Dunne, said he was devastated by the theft.

"It has no economic value but it is a priceless treasure that links our present foundation with its founding father, St Laurence O'Toole," he said.

Gardai are studying CCTV footage of people entering the cathedral and detectives are investigating the theory that thieves may have hidden themselves inside overnight before breaking into the iron box once the building was closed to the public.

O'Toole was born in Co Kildare in 1128 and became an ascetic who wore a hairshirt, never ate meat and fasted every day. He also lived in a cave near Glendalough in Co Wicklow. In 1162 he was elected archbishop of Dublin and was canonised by Pope Honorius III in 1225.

His heart has been preserved in the cathedral since the 13th century.

Since last autumn four ancient holy relics have been stolen from churches in Dublin and Tipperary.