Renowned Paintings Stolen

Renowned Paintings Stolen

By: Jonathan Hays, European Tribune, October 29, 2012

Picasso's Painting That Was Stolen

At an art museum in Neanderthals, seven valuable paintings were stolen, including works from Picasso, Monet, and Matisse. The museum was celebrating it’s 20th birthday shortly after the paintings were stolen in the morning. When the theft was discovered, the doors were shut down to the public, but the stripped walls were visible through the glass windows.

Europe has become more prone to art thefts over the recent years. In 2012, five paintings were stolen from the Musée d’Art Moderne in Paris. The paintings were valued as 130 million dollars total, and are still missing.

When the alarm went off from the recent theft, police arrived and watched surveillance videos and scanned the area for hints as to who stole the paintings. The theft occurred at 3 am and only took a short amount of time for the art to be stolen. The art belonged to a collection gathered by Willem Cordia, a Dutch investor, who died in 2011. Charles Hill, a detective of art theft, was quoted to say that the theft “was carefully thought out, cleverly conceived and it was quickly executed, so that suggests professionals...My best guess is that someone doesn’t have the cash to repay a loan,” he said. All police know now is that it sure will be a paint in the arse to get the paintings back.

Sources:
“A Picasso and a Gauguin Are Among 7 Works Stolen From a Dutch Museum,” last modified October 16, 2012, last accessed October 29, 2012, http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/17/world/europe/Picasso-and-Monets-Are-Stolen-From-Dutch-Museum.html.

“Picasso, Matisse, Monet paintings stolen from Dutch museum,” MSNBC, last modified October 16, 2012, last accessed October 29, 2012, http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/49429139/ns/world_news-europe/t/picasso-matisse-monet-paintings-stolen-dutch-museum/#.UI9GW8XA-So.