Was the Art From the Gardner Museum Recovered?

Art|Art Museum

In March of 1990, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston was the victim of a devastating robbery in which 13 works of art were stolen. Valued at over $500 million, the theft was the largest private property theft in history. For 28 years, the whereabouts of these pieces remained unknown, and many believed that they were lost forever.

The Investigation

Law enforcement officials from multiple agencies had been investigating the crime since its occurrence, but progress had been slow and there had been no tangible results until recently. In late 2018, the FBI announced that they had identified suspects who they believed to be responsible for the robbery. The suspects had allegedly been involved in a series of other criminal activities throughout New England and are also suspected of being connected to organized crime.

The FBI also revealed that they had uncovered evidence linking some of the stolen artworks to locations overseas. However, due to certain legal restrictions and international agreements, they would not reveal exactly where these pieces were located.

The Recovery Efforts

In 2019, a major milestone was achieved when two of the missing paintings were recovered by federal agents. The two works – “The Concert” by Johannes Vermeer and “Christ in the Storm on the Sea of Galilee” by Rembrandt – were found in an apartment in Connecticut. It is believed that these two paintings had been stored at this location for many years before being found by authorities.

In March 2021, news broke that three more pieces had been recovered after being discovered at an international auction house. The three works – “A Lady and Gentleman in Black” by Rembrandt, “The Rape of Europa” by Titian, and “Chez Tortoni” by Manet – were identified as part of the stolen collection after being flagged by museum staff.

Conclusion

At this time, a total of five pieces from the Gardner Museum heist have been recovered. While this is certainly cause for celebration, there are still eight pieces missing.

It remains unclear if or when these works will be found; however it is clear that significant progress has been made in recovering these priceless artifacts from one of America’s most infamous theft cases. Was The Art From The Gardner Museum Recovered?: Though some works have been located thus far, eight remain missing and only time will tell if more can be recovered from this notorious case.