The famous poet Guillaume Apollinaire was initially suspected of stealing the Mona Lisa, who once said that the entire Louvre should be burned.
The most famous theft of works of art in history, when the most famous painting in the world was stolen – Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, took place on August 21, 1911. It was stolen from the Louvre in Paris by one of the museum’s employees, named Vincenzo Peruggia. His motives were twofold. On the one hand, he was Italian and believed that the Mona Lisa should be exhibited in Italy because it was painted by Leonardo. Peruggi’s friend, on the other hand, copied the images, so Peruggia believed that in the event of the theft of the original, the price of the copies would rise.
The disappearance of the Mona Lisa was noticed by one museum visitor the next day. Instead of the Mona Lisa, only four nails remained where she stood. He asked the head of security where the picture was, and he thought he was taking a picture. It was later established that the picture was not with the photographer, so an alarm was raised. The Louvre Museum is closed for a week for investigation.
The famous poet Guillaume Apollinaire, who once said that the entire Louvre should be burned, was initially suspected of stealing the painting. Apollinaire was arrested and imprisoned. He tried to shift the blame to Pablo Picasso, who was also detained. In the end, both were acquitted.
It turned out that Vinzenzo Peruggia, who was an employee of the Louvre, stole the painting by entering the museum during normal business hours (when he was not on duty) and hiding in a broom closet. When the museum closed, he went outside carrying the Mona Lisa hidden under his coat.
Vinzenzo Peruggia hid the Mona Lisa for about two years in his Paris apartment. He was arrested only when he was trying to give a painting to the famous Uffizi Gallery in Florence and get the award in return. Peruggia believed that the painting should be hung in some Italian gallery. After his arrest, he was sentenced to 6 months in prison, but many Italians celebrated him for his patriotism.
