If you have read the tiniest bit of art history, you would know that there are countless priceless works of art lost throughout the ages. It is unimaginable how many cultural treasures have been stolen and forever lost, but the interesting fact is that such theft continues to be present in our contemporary world despite the continuous development of security systems and practices.
5 Greatest Stolen Works of Art
You can hardly imagine the lengths museums and galleries go to in their attempts to rediscover lost works of art and protect them from reoccurring theft. The possibilities to sell stolen artworks in our modern world are limited because one such purchase can never go unnoticed; most recent thefts do not go unpunished. Unfortunately, although most thieves get caught and sentenced to prison, many stolen works of art remain unfound.
1. Johannes Vermeer – The Concert
One of the largest heists in modern history happened in March 1990 when the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston became the victim during a day of celebrations. The thieves entered the museum dressed as policemen and stole 13 valuable paintings.
Johannes Vermeer’s “The Concert” was the most valuable piece with an estimated worth of no less than $200 million. To this day, it is the most expensive artwork to be lost because of theft.
2. Pablo Picasso – Le pigeon aux petits pois
2010 was a terrible year for the world of art due to several disastrous heists from around the globe. “Le pigeon aux petits pois” was the most notable artwork stolen from the Museum of Modern Art in Paris by a single thief.
Police believe that the heist was ordered by a rich collector that wanted to own a piece by Picasso, but this is just a theory as the criminal was arrested and sentenced to eight years in prison. According to his confession, he threw the paintings in a garbage can shortly following the theft as he was afraid to continue with them.
What an unfortunate end for such an important art piece. Who knows whether it was destroyed or taken by a random person?
3. Vincent Van Gogh – Poppy Flowers
Another famous heist from 2010 led to the disappearance of a unique painting by Van Gogh – “Poppy Flower.” Few painters have such a massive following as Van Gogh, which is why many of his paintings have been targeted throughout the years. “Poppy Flowers” was stolen from the same museum decades ago but found ten years later. This time, there is no sign of the painting. It is a particularly important one since it was one of his last before his suicide. There is an interesting story that happened on the day of the theft. Police arrested two men at the Cairo airport, believing they had the stolen painting. Well, they were mistaken.
4. Claude Monet – Charing Cross Bridge
One of the most controversial thefts in history saw the end of a famous painting by Claude Monet – “Charing Cross Bridge.” It was stolen from a brand new show in Rotterdam’s Kunsthal Museum by a couple that planned the theft on… Tinder. Yes, you read that correctly. The Romanian couple met on the famous dating app and later planned the theft of works of art that would make them millions on the black market. They succeeded with the theft but not so much with the selling.
The suspects were identified and caught in 2013, but the location of the seven paintings remains unknown. However, the mother of the thief revealed a terrible possibility. The told the police that she burned several paintings to hide any possible evidence that could lead to her son. While it is unconfirmed whether the traces found in her fireplace are of the missing paintings, this outstanding painting may have been lost in such a terrible way.
5. Raphael – Portrait of a Young Man
Perhaps Raphael’s most important lost work of art from the past century, the “Portrait of a Young Man,” is a painting shrouded in mystery. Not only was it lost in Poland during World War II, stolen by the Nazis, but the idea behind the painting remains unknown over 600 years later.
Experts believe that the figure depicted in the painting is Raphael himself as it closely resembles his self-portrait from a different fresco. Even if the painting appears again in the future, we would most likely never understand who the actual person in the painting is.
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