In Hollywood movies, the art thief has become something of a romantic legend. But away from the big screen, art looting is big and ugly business.
From Vincenzo Peruggia, the man who stole the “Mona Lisa” in 1911, through to Adam Worth, the master criminal thought to be the inspiration behind the character Moriarty in Arthur Conan Doyle’s “Tales of Sherlock Holmes,” art thieves have been pursued across the world by police and detectives.
Even in times of global crisis, art thieves have kept busy and made news — a painting by Vincent van Gogh was stolen during an overnight raid at a Dutch museum that was closed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Here’s CNN Style‘s rundown of famous stolen paintings — some of which disappeared, while others made unlikely returns.
‘Madonna of the Yarnwinder’
Joe Hay, security guard at the National Gallery of Scotland, stands beside the Leonardo da Vinci painting “Madonna of the Yarnwinder.” Credit: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images Europe/Getty Images
Back in 2003, Leonardo da Vinci’s “Madonna with the Yarnwinder” was stolen from the Duke of Buccleuch’s home in Scotland. One of the very few surviving works by the Italian master, the painting was recovered in 2007 a month after the duke’s death.
Painted between 1520 and 1530, the artwork can now be found at the the National Gallery of Scotland in Edinburgh.
Daring heist of four masterpieces
Lukas Gloor, president of the Buehrle Foundation museum, and Zurich police hold a news conference in 2008 after two of the four stolen paintings were retrieved Credit: AFP/AFP/AFP/Getty Images
In 2008, four masterpieces — by Paul Cézanne, Edgar Degas, Vincent Van Gogh and Claude Monet — were stolen by masked raiders at the Buehrle Foundation museum in Switzerland.
The artworks, “Poppies near Vetheuil” by Monet, “Count Lepic and his Daughters” by Degas, “Blossoming Chestnut Branch” by Van Gogh and Cézanne’s “Boy in a Red Waistcoat” were estimated to be worth a combined $163 million at the time.
Police recovered the works by Monet and Van Gogh a short time later. The Degas was retrieved with slight damage in 2012, and the Cézanne was found in Serbia in the same year.
‘Portrait of the Duke of Wellington’
Experts discuss the condition of Goya’s portrait of the Duke of Wellington Credit: Douglas Miller/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
Francisco Goya’s painting, “Portrait of the Duke of Wellington” was stolen in 1961 and was missing for four years. A retired bus driver, Kempton Bunton, later confessed to the crime and was jailed for three months. The painting was recovered.
“I climbed over the wall, still holding the picture in one hand … I put the picture on the back seat of the car and drove back to (my furnished room in) Grafton Street. I then put the picture under my bed.”
The shipper had listed the item as a $37 piece of art being sent to the United States as a Christmas present. But it was actually the stolen Picasso, which had been missing for more than a decade and is worth millions of dollars.
A Renoir painting from 1879 was stolen from the Baltimore Museum of Art in 1951. It remained missing for decades but eventually showed up at a flea market in 2010.
The tiny painting, titled “Paysage Bords de Seine” (or “Landscape on the Banks of the Seine”) was then bought for $7 by a Virginia woman, though in January 2014, a judge ruled that it should be returned to the museum.
The estimated value at the time of its recovery was between $75,000 and $100,000.
The other paintings, in oil and watercolor, were Picasso’s “Harlequin Head,” Henri Matisse’s “Reading Girl in White and Yellow,” Lucian Freud’s “Woman with Eyes Closed,” Paul Gauguin’s “Femme devant une fenêtre ouverte, dite la Fiancee” and Meyer de Haan’s “Autoportrait.”
Several people were convicted in connection with the theft but the paintings have not been found. In 2018, Romanian authorities believed they had found the Picasso, though their discovery was later dismissed as a fake.
Pierre Auguste Renoir’s “Deux Femmes Dans Un Jardin,” painted in 1919, was stolen by Nazis from a Paris bank vault in 1941.
It belonged Alfred Weinberger, a prominent art collector in prewar Paris. It was returned to his last surviving heir, granddaughter Sylvie Sulitzer, in September 2018.
Many other works of art taken by the Nazis were never recovered, and others were returned only after years of legal battles. “Christ Carrying the Cross” by Italian artist Girolamo de’ Romani, for instance, was finally returned to his family in 2012.
“The Scream” was one of two Edvard Munch paintings that were stolen from the Munch Museum in Oslo, Norway, in 2004. Three men pulled off the raid in broad daylight before being arrested in 2006.
Munch in fact created multiple versions of the famous image, including two in paint and two in pastel. Recalling how the idea for the famous painting came about, Munch, who died in 1944, once wrote: “I was walking down the road with two friends when the sun set; suddenly, the sky turned as red as blood.
“I stopped and leaned against the fence, feeling unspeakably tired. Tongues of fire and blood stretched over the bluish black fjord. My friends went on walking, while I lagged behind, shivering with fear. Then I heard the enormous, infinite scream of nature.”
‘Mona Lisa’
More than a century ago, “Mona Lisa” was taken from the Louvre in Paris and hidden away for a couple of years. Credit: LOIC VENANCE/AFP/AFP/Getty Images
Before the 20th century, Leonardo da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa” wasn’t especially well-known outside art circles. But in 1911, an former employee of the Louvre pilfered the portrait and hid it for two years.
Public fascination with the theft helped cement the painting’s place in popular culture ever since.
LONDON (AP) — With a few daubs of a paintbrush, the Brontë sisters have got their dots back.
More than eight decades after it was installed, a memorial to the three 19th-century sibling novelists in London’s Westminster Abbey was amended Thursday to restore the diaereses – the two dots over the e in their surname.
The dots — which indicate that the name is pronounced “brontay” rather than “bront” — were omitted when the stone tablet commemorating Charlotte, Emily and Anne was erected in the abbey’s Poets’ Corner in October 1939, just after the outbreak of World War II.
They were restored after Brontë historian Sharon Wright, editor of the Brontë Society Gazette, raised the issue with Dean of Westminster David Hoyle. The abbey asked its stonemason to tap in the dots and its conservator to paint them.
“There’s no paper record for anyone complaining about this or mentioning this, so I just wanted to put it right, really,” Wright said. “These three Yorkshire women deserve their place here, but they also deserve to have their name spelled correctly.”
It’s believed the writers’ Irish father Patrick changed the spelling of his surname from Brunty or Prunty when he went to university in England.
Raised on the wild Yorkshire moors, all three sisters died before they were 40, leaving enduring novels including Charlotte’s “Jane Eyre,” Emily’s “Wuthering Heights” and Anne’s “The Tenant of Wildfell Hall.”
Rebecca Yorke, director of the Brontë Society, welcomed the restoration.
“As the Brontës and their work are loved and respected all over the world, it’s entirely appropriate that their name is spelled correctly on their memorial,” she said.
In a case that has sent shockwaves through the Vancouver Island art community, a local art dealer has been charged with one count of fraud over $5,000. Calvin Lucyshyn, the former operator of the now-closed Winchester Galleries in Oak Bay, faces the charge after police seized hundreds of artworks, valued in the tens of millions of dollars, from various storage sites in the Greater Victoria area.
Alleged Fraud Scheme
Police allege that Lucyshyn had been taking valuable art from members of the public under the guise of appraising or consigning the pieces for sale, only to cut off all communication with the owners. This investigation began in April 2022, when police received a complaint from an individual who had provided four paintings to Lucyshyn, including three works by renowned British Columbia artist Emily Carr, and had not received any updates on their sale.
Further investigation by the Saanich Police Department revealed that this was not an isolated incident. Detectives found other alleged victims who had similar experiences with Winchester Galleries, leading police to execute search warrants at three separate storage locations across Greater Victoria.
Massive Seizure of Artworks
In what has become one of the largest art fraud investigations in recent Canadian history, authorities seized approximately 1,100 pieces of art, including more than 600 pieces from a storage site in Saanich, over 300 in Langford, and more than 100 in Oak Bay. Some of the more valuable pieces, according to police, were estimated to be worth $85,000 each.
Lucyshyn was arrested on April 21, 2022, but was later released from custody. In May 2024, a fraud charge was formally laid against him.
Artwork Returned, but Some Remain Unclaimed
In a statement released on Monday, the Saanich Police Department confirmed that 1,050 of the seized artworks have been returned to their rightful owners. However, several pieces remain unclaimed, and police continue their efforts to track down the owners of these works.
Court Proceedings Ongoing
The criminal charge against Lucyshyn has not yet been tested in court, and he has publicly stated his intention to defend himself against any pending allegations. His next court appearance is scheduled for September 10, 2024.
Impact on the Local Art Community
The news of Lucyshyn’s alleged fraud has deeply affected Vancouver Island’s art community, particularly collectors, galleries, and artists who may have been impacted by the gallery’s operations. With high-value pieces from artists like Emily Carr involved, the case underscores the vulnerabilities that can exist in art transactions.
For many art collectors, the investigation has raised concerns about the potential for fraud in the art world, particularly when it comes to dealing with private galleries and dealers. The seizure of such a vast collection of artworks has also led to questions about the management and oversight of valuable art pieces, as well as the importance of transparency and trust in the industry.
As the case continues to unfold in court, it will likely serve as a cautionary tale for collectors and galleries alike, highlighting the need for due diligence in the sale and appraisal of high-value artworks.
While much of the seized artwork has been returned, the full scale of the alleged fraud is still being unraveled. Lucyshyn’s upcoming court appearances will be closely watched, not only by the legal community but also by the wider art world, as it navigates the fallout from one of Canada’s most significant art fraud cases in recent memory.
Art collectors and individuals who believe they may have been affected by this case are encouraged to contact the Saanich Police Department to inquire about any unclaimed pieces. Additionally, the case serves as a reminder for anyone involved in high-value art transactions to work with reputable dealers and to keep thorough documentation of all transactions.
As with any investment, whether in art or other ventures, it is crucial to be cautious and informed. Art fraud can devastate personal collections and finances, but by taking steps to verify authenticity, provenance, and the reputation of dealers, collectors can help safeguard their valuable pieces.
