Even if most of the American museums and art galleries have sophisticated security systems, armed guards and video cameras, this doesn't mean that the treasures kept inside are safe from thieves. Sometimes it just takes a moment, otherwise a malfunction or sheer badluck. But when it comes to humas error - especially one that seems surreal by it's simpleness - things really look different. That's what happened on March 18th 1990, at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in the US, when the greatest art theft in US history took place. Several coincidences and errors led to the loss on 13 masterpieces. That's thirteen works of art of tremendous valour. But what exactly happened that day ?
According to the latter enquiry, it all began after 01.24 in the night, when two cops came to the doors of the museum, to investigate a so-called disturbance. The guards made the grave error of letting the cops in, although they were strictly forbidden. Only the cops weren't real officers, but thieves, and in just a few minutes the careless guards were tied up and put to sleep. The reminder was just a walk in the park for the thieves. Without hurry, in about an hour and a half, the perpetrators took 13 works of art, including three works by Rembrandt, a Vermeer, a Manet. They also stole several highly valuable sketches of Degas. Hard to say how much these works were actually worth, but it would be considered the greatest art theft in the US.
It seemed the thieves were working on command, because they chose certain paintings, ignoring others of equal value. They took three of the four Rembrandts, Vermeer's "Concert" - one of the 35 surviving works of the master - everytime working according to a plan, it seemed. They weren't much art lovers, as they simpy cut the canvases out of the frames, ripped the sketches and drawing straight from the wall, without taking much care for the state of the works. Much of their value was therefore diminished.
Was it a hit which was bound to be followed by a blackmail ? Would the works be returned against a healthy sum of money ? Or the paintings and drawings were due to be used on the black market, as collateral ? All was possible, but is was sure that nobody would try to sell them to collectors or galleries, it would have been much too risky. Although authorities kept hoping that the thieves would eventually contact them, it never happened. The 13 works seemed to have been lost forever. A fragile lead, a single piece of information, led to nowhere.
So far there is no public information about the whereabouts of the works stolen from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Was the Mafia involved, as the press said ? Was it the Yakuza ? Or someone who just studied the museum's security system carefully and took advantage ? Whatever the answer must be, this simple theft remains the biggest art theft in the US. So far.
September 2008
