The refurbished mother-of-pearl carving was unveiled by Lt-Governor Vice Admiral Sir Ian Corder yesterday.
The carving, which was donated by one of his predecessors, was found behind a blackened piece of glass in the wall to the left of the altar.
The builder of the chapel, Brother Deodat, recorded in his diary that it was a gift from Major General Sir Edward Nicholson Broadbent, who was Lt-Governor from 1934 to 1939, and Lady Broadbent.
Its unveiling symbolises the completion of the refurbishment inside the chapel.
Little Chapel Foundation chairman John Silvester said £350,000 was donated to this part of the chapel work with a further £150,000 used to fund contractors, a half a million pound job in total.
‘This is a fundamental moment,’ he said of Sir Ian’s unveiling.
‘After three years we’ve now got something we’re all proud of.
‘This carving was found dusty and covered with spiders and now it’s new and unveiled.’
The chapel is a popular spot for visitors and locals, with around 2,000 people stopping by over the Easter weekend alone, which raised about £2,500.
Sir Ian described the Little Chapel as a metaphor for Guernsey.
‘It’s small, a little quirky, perhaps for an external person it’s a bit bonkers, but it’s utterly charming and utterly beautiful.
‘I admire what you have created in there, it is genuinely exquisite, it’s a huge achievement.’
Head of fundraising for the foundation, Jack Honeybill, said it was great to see it all finished inside, complete with electric candles for visitors to light.
‘It’s really got a resonance as a church. It appeals to young and old,’ he said.
Trustees of the foundation were present, among them Ann Wragg, who helped organise the chapel’s flower arrangements.
‘They were done by the Guernsey Flower Arrangement Society especially for Easter.
‘We’re really pleased to have the inside refurbished, but there is still lots to do and one of the next tasks is the gardens,’ she said.
Representatives from organisations involved in the chapel’s refurbishment were also present to see the fruits of their labour, including Guernsey Tarmac Ltd, which did outside work, and Ian Batchelor from AFM, who completed the indoor electrical lighting.
‘It was finished last week, the outer lighting is to be done next,’ he said.
Geoffrey Simon did a lot of the renovations and postponed his retirement from C. A. Duquemin to continue the work.
‘It’s been a lot of work but it’s a nice job to do. The scaffolding was holding the tower up while we worked and stood up to force nine winds.’
He said next to work on is the grotto area.
Mr Silvester said they were now looking to the future.
‘The first priority is to have disability access to the chapel.
‘We’ve had people travel all the way from Australia, whose family have told them, “when you go to Guernsey you must see the Little Chapel”, and then they can’t see it because there’s no access.
‘It really hurts us and we need to change that.’
Other projects ahead include working on water drainage from surrounding areas and improved toilet and parking facilities.
‘In 2023, it will be 100 years of the Little Chapel and we want to finish by then.’
Mr Silvester hopes the chapel will become an internationally recognised site of interest and that people would only have to look in the visitors book to see that the chapel has had visitors from all over the world.
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