A sculpture created for the Festival of Britain and then seemingly lost has been discovered, in a Londoner’s back garden. It’s now been acquired by the Museum of London with the intention to put it back on public display again.

Called Youth, the sculpture by British sculptor Daphne Hardy Henrion was prominently located in front of 51 bar, which was designed by architect Leonard Manasseh on the South Bank.

The artist made a full-size cast for herself, which she later placed in her garden in London, and there it remained until it was rediscovered by Sarah Gaventa, an independent curator who is an expert in the lost art of the Festival of Britain.

Since the museum acquired it, the sculpture has undergone extensive restoration work, by Taylor Pearce conservation studios, to repair a damaged arm and hand, and revive the darkened surface, which had deteriorated over time. The sculpture will now join the museum’s London Collection alongside other memorabilia documenting the history of the festival, including posters and printed material, as well as a model of the South Bank site.

Sarah Gaventa, public art expert and curator, said: “It was such a surprise to uncover Youth hidden behind a fig tree in a front garden in Hampstead where she had been standing for nearly 70 years. I am delighted to have been the matchmaker between the Henrion family and the Museum of London to find this important work a new home and to ensure its preservation.”

Daphne Hardy Henrion established herself as a figurative sculptor when abstraction was prevalent in the mid-20th century and was influenced by classical and Italian Renaissance sculpture. She trained at the Royal Academy Schools in London from 1934-37 and was awarded a two year travelling scholarship and Gold Medal when she finished her studies aged just 19. Following two years studying Italian and French art, she moved to Paris in early summer 1939, at the outbreak of war, and remained there until after the Nazi invasion in May 1940. She spent most of the war in London where she met and later married the designer FHK Henrion, who designed two pavilions for the Festival of Britain. Her early post-war work includes a memorial to the victims of Belsen created in 1946.

Another “lost” sculpture from the Festival of Britain can be currently seen in Waterloo station, and will be on display until late 2025.