Monumental Children Return to Meet Their Saviour at Liverpool St

Flor Kent's much admired sculpture "Fur Das Kind" has returned to Liverpool Street Station.

 

These two haunting figures are a memorial to the WWII Kindertransport rescue of children, partly made possible by Sir Nicholas Winton's  missions, during which 669 children of mostly Jewish origin were saved.

This year marks the 70th anniversary of the “Winton Train” which brought children from Prague to London. 

Last Saturday, the 21st May, Sir Nicholas Winton was met at Liverpool Street station by descendants of the real-life rescued “children” together with their families who had arrived on a special steam locomotive that had just retraced the original route. He duly rededicated the statue in the week of his 102nd birthday! An amazing and inspirational man, more about him and his work here.

The original statue was dedicated in 2003. In that version the girl stood next to a glass suitcase, which  contained objects that the real children had brought with them to England. Problems with conserving the objects and the need for planning permission to be granted to add the figure of the boy have caused the delays in it's return. Photos of the statue in it's 2003 incarnation from "The Poor Mouth" Blog here.

The statues are part of an international network of commemoration, which also includes Für Das Kind/ For The Child- Vienna in Westbahnhof Station,  Pro Dite / For The Child- Prague in the Central Hlavni Nadrazi, the Für Das Kind Collection of Original Objects at the Imperial War Museum and  the Für Das Kind International Travelling Exhibition.

The very high winds last week damaged an exhibition also timed to coincide with this event. "Winton's Trains" was due to have opened for a month in the Bishopsgate entrance to the station. It is currently being rescheduled details here http://www.wintonstrain.com/

I think we owe it to all concerned, to visit the exhibition as soon as it re-opens.