Image featured in August 25,1911 Perth Amboy Evening News.
Typically, on the morning of August 21, 1911, you would find many people still in their beds or preparing for the day. However, this was not the case for three workers who spent the night in an art-supply closet in the Louvre in Paris, France. On that infamous morning, they slipped out of the closet, and lifted 200 pounds of painting, frame, and protective case off the wall. They covered the canvas with a blanket and boarded an express train out of the city. Two of the three men were brothers, and the third man, named Vincenzo Perugia, was the ringleader of the group who worked at the Louvre, installing glass casings.
Once the news broke out about the stolen painting, newspapers published headlines offering rewards for the painting’s recovery. A week after the crime occurred, the Louvre reopened. Many people, including Franz Kafka, rushed to see the “mark of shame” where the Mona Lisa was once displayed.
Featured in December 16, 1913 Newark Evening Star and Newark Advertiser.
Twenty-eight months later Perugia made a deal with a suspicious art dealer in Florence, eventually leading to his arrest and the painting’s recovery. Perugia, pleaded guilty, claiming that he was returning the painting to its birthplace. He was sentenced to eight months in prison.
It is amazing to think that prior to this theft, the Mona Lisa was only well known among art circles. Overnight, the painting gained world wide recognition, as it came to be considered as one of the most famous Renaissance paintings. Flocks of people visit the Louvre every year to view this mysterious woman, who graces the public with her enigmatic smile.
(Contributed by Kristi Chanda)
Source:
Staff, NPR. “The Theft That Made The ‘Mona Lisa’ A Masterpiece.” NPR, NPR, 30 July 2011, www.npr.org/2011/07/30/138800110/the-theft-that-made-the-mona-lisa-a-masterpiece#:~:text=The%20right%20eye%20of%20Leonardo%20da%20Vinci’s%20%22Mona%20Lisa.%22,of%20the%20Louvre%20in%20Paris.&text=And%20on%20that%20morning%2C%20with,glass%20case%20off%20the%20wall.