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Corot to Fraque French Paintings From the Museum of Fine Arts Boston

Written By Monday, May 9, 2022 Add Comment Edit
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The biggest art theft in history occurred at the Isabella Gardner Stewart Museum, in Boston, Massachusetts. On March 18, 1990, 2 burglars broke into the museum and fabricated off with 13 works of fine art, worth half a billion dollars. Despite a thorough investigation and several promising leads, the Gardner theft remains unsolved to this day. While the details of the theft have been widely publicized, many folks don't know much about the history of the museum and the incredible woman who started it all.

Gardner established the popular fine art museum in Boston to hold her massive and valuable art collection. The museum is home to over vii,500 pieces of art, including paintings, piece of furniture, silver, sculptures, textiles, ceramics and 1,500 rare books. The bulk of the masterpieces came from ancient Rome, Medieval Europe, Renaissance Italy and Asia.

Permit's take a look at the events that led to Gardner'south love for art, the museum'due south beginnings and the largest art heist in history.

Stewart Gardner's Global Upbringing

Stewart Gardner was born in New York City on April 14, 1840. Her father, David Stewart, made a living by importing Irish linen. Growing up, she lived in University Identify in Manhattan.

When she turned xvi, Gardner moved to Paris with her family and completed her education abroad, allowing her to learn firsthand about Renaissance art. In 1858, the family moved dorsum to New York. Shortly subsequently, Gardner went to Boston to visit a sometime Paris classmate, Julia Gardner. Gardner introduced Stewart Gardner to her brother, John "Jack" Lowell Gardner Jr.

Stewart Gardner's Marriage and Family Life

Jack Gardner was in the cyberbanking business and a fellow member of Boston'southward upper class. Two years after Stewart Gardner met Jack Gardner in Boston, the two decided to tie the knot.

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On April 10, 1860, Stewart Gardner and Jack Gardner married at Grace Church in New York City. Stewart Gardner's father gifted the newlyweds a house at 152 Beacon Street in Boston. The Gardners started a life together in their new Boston dwelling, which was located on the Back Bay'south richest street. Shortly after, the Gardner's had a son, John Lowell Gardner Three, born June 18, 1863. The new parents nicknamed their son "Jackie."

Stewart Gardner'southward Travel to Heal A Broken Center

In the mid-1860s, a series of unfortunate events struck Stewart Gardner's life. Her son, Jackie, died from pneumonia at less than ii years old in 1865. A year after, Stewart Gardner suffered a virtually-fatal miscarriage and establish out she was unable to have more than children. Effectually the same time, her sis-in-law and close friend, Julia Gardner, passed away.

The terrible news left Isabella Stewart Gardner heartbroken and depressed. On the advice of her doctor, in 1876, the Gardners traveled to Paris, Scandinavia and Russia for a twelvemonth. During the trip, Stewart Gardner's health improved and she created scrapbooks of her adventures.

A Passion For Collecting Art Emerges

Stewart Gardner's trip to Europe and Russia made her eager to encounter the rest of the globe. In 1874, the Gardners traveled to the Middle East, Europe and Paris. The couple explored America, Europe and Asia in the late 1880s. During their adventures away, the couple gained an fifty-fifty greater noesis of the arts and culture.

The Gardners started collecting art in Europe. When Stewart Gardner inherited $1.75 1000000 from her begetter, she focused on growing her drove of European fine fine art. "The Concert" past Johannes Vermeer was one of her kickoff purchases. From Egypt to the Far E, the Gardners collected paintings and statues from around the world in the tardily 1890s. The Gardners also began obtaining tapestries, photographs, silver and manuscripts during their travels. Venice, Italy, became her favorite city to visit considering artists frequently visited the Palazzo Barbaro, where the Gardners stayed. She became a regular at the palazzo, spending time with the artists and purchasing art.

She Asked Male Associates to Purchase Fine art on Her Behalf

Stewart Gardner became known for her massive fine art collection, simply many people didn't know that her male person friends helped her learn some of her pieces. Art historian Bernard Berenson assisted her in acquiring well-nigh 70 pieces solitary. In the 1890s, most art collectors were men; it was rare for women to collect art.

Art curator Christina Nielsen explained the sale process to WBUR, saying, "She has a man bid on her behalf. She sits in the back of the room, and she's got a handkerchief over her face. Her main competitors were the National Gallery in London and the Louvre that twenty-four hour period. And they realized they were bidding against each other — then they did a sort of gentlemanly bowing out. Meanwhile, her agent swooped in and bought the picture and suddenly Isabella Stewart Gardner was a well-known proper noun in the fine art earth overnight."

Isabella Congenital the Museum Afterwards Her Husband's Death

By 1896, the Gardners discovered their enormous art collection barely fit in their Boston home. The couple dreamed of edifice a museum where they could go along their behemothic collection. However, Jack Gardner suddenly died of a stroke in 1898.

After her married man's decease, Stewart Gardner worked difficult to make their dream come true. She bought a piece of land in the Fens of England and hired architect Willard T. Sears to draw up museum models inspired by Venice's Renaissance architecture. While Sears was in charge of constructing the museum, Stewart Gardner dictated the museum'due south design. When construction of the museum was completed in 1901, Gardner moved into the living quarters on the fourth floor and installed her collection throughout the museum portion of the building.

The Museum'south Artwork Was Deliberately Arranged to Build a Narrative

For a year, Gardner carefully installed each of the items on the first three floors of the museum. Every piece was purposely assembled in different rooms to create a story. Gardner wanted to inspire others to fall in love with the art, rather than simply learn most the art's history. Some pieces didn't fifty-fifty provide information about the painter or appointment of origin.

Gardner placed Titian'due south masterpiece "The Rape of Europa" in the Titian Room. The Titian masterpiece sits above a small piece of Stewart Gardner's stake green silk gown designed by Charles Frederick Worth. In the Dutch Room, Gardner organized famous works by European artists such every bit Peter Paul Rubens, Albrecht Dürer and Hans Holbein.

The Museum's Other Items

Not merely did the museum characteristic famous paintings, merely it also presented rare books, manuscripts, furniture, tapestries, sculptures and decorative fine art pieces from the Gardner's travels. Many rooms displayed a mixture of these unlike pieces from diverse cultures and periods.

The Early Italian Room highlights Italian Gothic and Renaissance fine art. These paintings are surrounded by furniture and other decorative manufactures from dissimilar periods and cultures across Europe, Egypt, the Middle East and Asia. The Dutch Room includes Italian, Dutch and English language pieces such as an Italian nightstand, a Dutch sugar bowl and a Dutch salt cellar.

Artists Spent Time at the Museum

The k opening of the museum was Jan. 1, 1903. Guests indulged in champagne and donuts while members of the Boston Symphony Orchestra performed. Scholar Charles Eliot Norton, philosopher William James, and symphony founder Henry Higginson attended the improvident celebration. On Feb. 23, 1903, she welcomed the public into the museum.

Stewart Gardner also encouraged many artists, performers and scholars to visit the museum, such as John Vocalist Sargent, Charles Martin Loeffler and Ruth St. Denis. Sargent used the museum's Gothic Room as a painting studio, while Loeffler posed as his model. Denis danced in the Cloisters, performing her signature slice, The Cobra. Stewart Gardner wanted the artists to discover inspiration from her beautiful collection and the museum's Venetian designs.

Continuing Her Legacy

Stewart Gardner continued to abound her fine art collection and personally installed the pieces in the museum for the residual of her life. She passed away July 17, 1924, after suffering a series of strokes. Although Stewart Gardner was no longer living, she still dictated the museum'southward future.

According to her will, the museum must remain open "for the education and enjoyment of the public forever." It also specifies that nothing in the museum can be sold, relocated or removed. The museum was to be maintained the way she left information technology, pregnant new pieces weren't allowed either. The collection remained untouched until March 18, 1990 — later thirteen pieces valued at $500 million were stolen.

Suspects Arrived in Fake Police Uniforms

As Bostonians celebrated St. Patrick's Solar day during the early hours of March xviii, 1990, two thieves sat inside a ruby Dodge Daytona on Palace Road about the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. The ii men were disguised as police officers and ane of them had on a false wax mustache.

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For almost an 60 minutes, the two criminals waited in their car to avert the St. Patrick's Day political party goers. As the crowd dispersed, the 2 thieves began their elaborate program. They exited their vehicle, walked to the entrance of the museum and pressed the cablegram near the door at i:24 a.k.

A Museum Security Baby-sit Permit the Thieves In

The museum had 2 security guards on duty that night. Later on the first baby-sit, Richard Abath, patrolled the museum, he came back to the front end desk to modify positions with the other guard. Abath heard the buzzer and saw two men outside. They told Abath they were law officers who had heard a commotion in the museum's courtyard, and asked to enter the building.

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Although Abath knew that guards weren't allowed to open the door to uninvited guests, he wasn't sure if the protocol also applied to police officers. Abath believed the men because of their uniforms. While the other guard patrolled the galleries, Abath allowed the disguised men to enter.

Handcuffed and Tied

The thieves walked to the front desk-bound, where Abath was stationed. I of the intruders told Abath his confront seemed familiar and that there was a warrant for his abort. Abath, confused, left the front desk area, where the only alarm button was located. The thieves immediately forced Abath to face the wall and handcuffed him. Abath thought the arrest was a mistake, but apace noticed the intruders didn't search him before putting him in handcuffs. He also realized one of the thieves wore a simulated mustache.

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A few minutes afterward, Abath's partner returned to the forepart desk-bound and the thieves handcuffed him, too. The thieves and then revealed they came to rob the museum. The robbers took the guards to the basement, where they handcuffed them to pipes and wrapped their heads, hands, and feet with duct tape. The criminals moved on to the galleries to start their heist.

81 Minutes to Complete the Largest Theft in History

The museum'due south motion detectors recorded the thieves' movements. First, the robbers entered the Dutch Room and approached Rembrandt's "Self-Portrait," merely the local alarm went off. The thieves smashed the alarm. Later on taking the "Self-Portrait" off the wall, the two men unsuccessfully tried to remove the painting from its wooden panel. They left the painting on the flooring instead.

Photo Courtesy: Wikimedia Eatables

The thieves went on to cut Rembrandt'south "Christ in the Storm on the Ocean of Galilee" and "A Lady and Admirer in Black" from the frames. Next, they took Vermeer's "The Concert" and Govaert Flinck's "Landscape with an Obelisk." The criminals stole a total of xiii pieces throughout the museum including a Chinese Statuary Gu, 5 Degas drawings, and an eagle finial. The robbery occurred in 81 minutes. At 8:15 a.m., police arrived at the scene and found the guards tied up in the basement.

The FBI Found No Motive or Pattern

Believing that the stolen pieces would cross state lines, the FBI quickly took over the case. The FBI thought the perpetrators were part of a criminal organization from the mid-Atlantic and New England. Throughout the investigation, the FBI held hundreds of interviews including with American drug lords and onetime museum guards.

Photo Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons

In add-on, the FBI worked with many specialists, including height individual investigators, Japanese and French authorities, museum directors and art dealers. Although the FBI collected over a m pages of evidence, the investigation uncovered no unmarried motive or pattern. The FBI agent in charge of the Stewart Gardner case, Geoffrey J. Kelly, has mentioned that the FBI knew the identities of the criminals, but Kelly didn't say if the suspects remained dead or live. Kelly has provided no further annotate on the identities.

A Few Theories Nearly the Art Heist Have Surfaced

Ane theory investigated by the FBI was that the heist was planned and carried out by the Irish Republican Army, with the goal of somewhen leveraging information to release their members from prison house. A unlike theory suggested Boston'due south top law-breaking boss, Whitey Bulgar, organized the robbery. The FBI besides had a theory that Myles J. Connor Jr. arranged the crime before he became New England's peak art thief.

Photograph Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons

In 2009, the Stewart Gardner Museum'south manager of security, Anthony Affection, heard a foreign rumor. Amore said, "One bizarre theory was from people who say Mrs. Gardner speaks to them and tells them who stole the paintings. Also, others say mythical figures have spoken to them nearly the thefts."

One of the Master Suspects Was Boston Gangster Robert Donati

Boston gangster Robert "Bobby" Donati became the FBI's top suspect during the investigation. In 1997, Connor claimed Donati was his cohort in organizing the Gardner robbery. Connor and Donati visited the museum together a few times earlier the theft. Also before the robbery, Donati went to a nightclub chosen The Shack, where he was seen carrying a purse of police uniforms.

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During the 1990 robbery, Connor remained in prison, but he said Donati managed the heist. In 1991, Donati was murdered. According to the New York Daily News, he may take been a victim in a gang war. The FBI eventually threw out Donati as a atomic number 82 doubtable.

Another Chief Suspect Was Robert "Bobby the Cook" Gentile

Gangster Robert "Bobby the Cook" Gentile was also on the FBI's radar as a possible suspect. The FBI believed he held some of the paintings from the Gardner Museum heist. In 2012, the FBI raided his home in Manchester, Connecticut, later on the FBI brought drug charges against Gentile. The FBI institute zippo in the raid except for a listing of how much each stolen piece would cost on the black market. Yet, Gentile said he was innocent and knew nothing about the robbery.

Later in 2016, the FBI filed gun charges against Gentile to force him to talk about the location of the stolen art pieces. The federal prosecutor, John H. Durham, claimed Gentile and his mob partner Robert Guarente attempted to return two stolen artworks to reduce a prison judgement for one of Guarente's associates. Also, Guarente'due south wife insisted Gentile possessed a few of the stolen paintings. Gentile'due south lawyer argued against these claims and said that Gentile didn't know annihilation about the heist. In 2018, Gentile was sentenced to 54 months in prison house on gun charges, but however hasn't admitted to any cognition about the whereabouts of the paintings.

A Few Leads Included a Letter and a New Video

In 1994, museum managing director Anne Hawley received a letter that assured the return of the stolen pieces for $2.6 one thousand thousand. The letter writer demanded that the museum get The Boston World to print a coded message in the business organization section. Although the paper published the message, the mysterious writer disappeared after learning police force enforcement were involved.

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On Aug. 6, 2015, the U.S. Chaser'southward Function released a video that was taped the dark before the heist at the Gardner Museum. On the six-minute video, 2 men appear at the entrance of the museum. 1 homo was identified every bit Abath, the security baby-sit who was tied upward during the robbery. The other man remains unknown. Regime have asked for the public's help to place him in the footage. The video shows Abath buzzing the unidentified man into the museum twice. The man stayed in the lobby for a couple of minutes, exited and left in a car.

DNA Collected at The Crime Scene Went Missing

After the robbery in 1990, police collected traces of DNA from the duct tape and handcuffs that the thieves used to hold the museum's security guards. In 2010, the FBI wanted to retest the evidence due to contempo improvements in DNA assay, hoping the new examination would help discover the thieves. However, the evidence containing the Deoxyribonucleic acid had disappeared.

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The FBI conducted a search for the crime scene testify, but it was nowhere to be found. Investigators don't know when the testify went missing, but bearding sources claimed the show had been gone for over a decade. The FBI also doesn't know if the items were misplaced, stolen or disposed of. The missing bear witness became some other setback for the Stewart Gardner case, which remains unsolved to this twenty-four hours.

A True-Crime Podcast Investigated the Unsolved Art Heist Mystery

In 2018, WBUR, a public radio station, collaborated with The Boston Earth to produce a x-part podcast covering the art heist mystery. The podcast, "Last Seen," covers the robbery, the suspects, people continued to the example and the FBI's investigation.

The team, led by WBUR members Kelly Horan and Jack Rodolico, researched the mystery for a year. The podcast features many interviews, including ane with security guard Abath and his partner from the night of the crime. The museum'south director of security, Amore, says, "Things like this podcast that tin can reach a large audience are of import for keeping the story alive in people'southward minds and reminding the public that nosotros're never going to stop looking for the stolen art."

A Documentary and Volume Covering the Law-breaking Was Released

In 2005, a documentary moving-picture show chosen "Stolen" by Rebecca Dreyfus featured the famous heist. The documentary follows art detective, Harold Smith, as he looks into the robbery's investigation and the 13 seized pieces. Smith chats with gimmicky authors well-nigh Stewart Gardner's reputation as a famous art connoisseur and the works of Dutch painter Vermeer.

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The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum printed a pictorial volume as well named "Stolen" in 2018. "Stolen" provides information near the xiii stolen works of art and contains essays from fundamental staff members including Amore and Nielsen. Museum guests frequently ask for more details on the missing pieces, which inspired the museum to produce "Stolen."

The Famous Heist Is Mentioned Throughout Popular Civilization

Many Goggle box shows have featured the crime, including "The Black Listing," "The Simpsons" and "Drunk History." In "The Black List," the episode "The Courier" features a criminal named Raymond Reddington looking at Rembrandt's painting "Christ in The Tempest on the Sea of Galilee."

"The Simpsons" has an episode in which Mr. Burns possesses stolen art from the Stewart Gardner Museum at Burns Manor. As a result, the police arrest Mr. Burns and throw him in prison house. In "Drunk History," the episode "Boston" features two criminals struggling to steal art and doing any they can to consummate the heist.

Some of the Stolen Paintings

Govaert Flinck's "Landscape with an Obelisk" from 1638 is one of the stolen works of art. The robbers took Flinck's painting from the museum's Dutch Room. Many art enthusiasts initially believed the picture belonged to the painter Rembrandt, but they subsequently learned Flinck was the owner. Dutch painter Flinck was actually a student of Rembrandt, who helped influence his work.

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Flinck created "Landscape with an Obelisk" using oil on wood. The beautiful painting features a stormy day, a fantasy landscape and an obelisk inspired past 1 that'southward near Amsterdam. The picture likewise includes a bridge and a minor man on a equus caballus.

The Painting "Chez Tortoni" Was Some other Missing Piece

Another missing painting is Édouard Manet'south "Chez Tortoni" from around 1875. The museum's Blueish Room used to hold Manet's famous artwork. Manet was known to create paintings in cafes that resembled snapshots.

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Manet's painting illustrates a swain with a mustache and a top chapeau sitting in the Café Tortoni de Paris. The man is holding a pencil in his mitt and writing on paper. The homo's eyes are positioned looking direct at the slice's viewer. Additionally, a glass of wine sits on the gentleman's table. WBUR describes the picture's brush strokes as wide and tactile.

"La Sortie de Pesage" and "3 Mounted Jockeys" past Degas Were Stolen

Several Edgar Degas works disappeared in the heist, including "La Sortie de Pesage" and "Iii Mounted Jockeys." These ii paintings used to hang in the museum'south Curt Gallery. Degas, a French artist, was popular for drawing dancers, only in "La Sortie de Pesage" he illustrated a crowd of people, a jockey and a equus caballus using pencil and watercolor. No ane knows when Degas created "La Sortie de Pesage."

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The thieves besides stole the Degas painting "Three Mounted Jockeys" from around 1885. Degas created the piece with black ink and oil pigments. While one jockey sits upright on a horse, the other ii jockeys are upside down in the painting.

"Plan for an Artistic Soirée" One and Two Were Taken

A couple more Degas works that vanished include "Program for an Artistic Soirée" and "Plan for an Artistic Soirée, Study 2" from 1884. The criminals removed these Degas drawings from the Short Gallery's cabinets. Stewart Gardner had assembled the cabinets herself to showcase the artwork.

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Degas sketched the drawings with charcoal on white newspaper, which features the brim and legs of a dancer. The drawing also includes a woman holding an open up booklet and a human in a hat and wig side by side to a musical musical instrument. The 2d "Plan for an Artistic Soiree" appears more finished than the commencement sketch.

"Cortège aux Environs de Florence" and a Few Works By Rembrandt

Yet another Degas, the sketch "Cortege aux Surroundings de Florence" and a few Rembrandt works were likewise stolen. "Cortege aux Surround de Florence" used to be displayed in the Short Gallery. Degas drew the artwork with a pencil and used a sepia wash on newspaper. The sketch illustrates a carriage with horses, a woman with a giant umbrella and three women who may be dancing. He finished this sketch around 1857.

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Other missing works include Rembrandt's "A Lady And Gentleman In Black" and his most famous painting "Christ In The Storm On The Body of water Of Galilee" from 1633. The criminals stole both paintings from the museum's Dutch Room. The thieves besides made off with his tiny sketch titled "Portrait Of The Artist Every bit A Young man" from 1633. The sketch features Rembrandt's serious face with untidy hair. The thieves attempted to seize Rembrandt's "Cocky-Portrait" oil painting, simply the job was unsuccessful.

The Thieves Also Took a Gu, a Finial and Vermeer's "The Concert"

From the museum's Dutch Room, the criminals made off with a Chinese Gu (a bronze beaker) from twelfth century BC. According to WBUR, the Gu was one of the almost elegant and oldest pieces in the museum. Another item removed from the museum was the bronze French Eagle finial from effectually 1813. The eagle was attached to a flagpole from Napoleon'due south First Regiment of Imperial Guard. Although the eagle is gone, the flag remains in the museum.

WBUR reports that Vermeer'south "The Concert" is the rarest and nigh valuable of the stolen works because few of his paintings exist. Vermeer'southward painting is priced at $200 million. "The Concert" features three musicians surrounding a piano and a black-and-white tiled floor.

The Museum and FBI Are Still Looking for New Leads

Although the Gardner case nerveless some promising leads, the identities of the criminals and the whereabouts of the 13 pieces remain a mystery. To this 24-hour interval, empty frames of the missing paintings hang on the walls. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum hopes that the stolen pieces will i solar day be returned. Currently, the museum is offering a $10 1000000 reward for information that can help recover the stolen pieces.

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The FBI, the museum and the U.S. attorney's part continue to search for new leads. The museum encourages anyone with information to reach out to the Stewart Gardner Museum. The museum's managing director says "I've spent more than a decade preparing for any scenario. I'm very prepare. I'll go anywhere. I'll meet with the devil for these paintings."

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