Has any museum ever lost more, qualitatively, than the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum lost 23 years ago? The story of the theft itself, of course, is enthralling. We all love an unsolved art heist. The bravado, the brutality, the mysteries of motive and aftermath — it all seems perfectly cinema-ready. But whenever you think about the pictures themselves, it’s all just incredibly sad.
What were those pictures? Let’s start with Rembrandt.
Comments
Saddest of all is that although the value of these paintings and other artifacts is in the millions, they are totally worthless to whoever holds them now, because they can't be sold. Their value can only be realized when they are returned. How stupid does the current holder have to be not to realize this? How much more generous could/need the Gardner — and the FBI — be to convince these stupid people to return the stolen goods?
Shouldn't the story caption be
Loss of Gardner art has left bitter, lasting impressionist?