LIBRARY BLOG

This Day in History: August 21

the Mona Lisa is stolen

On this day, August 21, in 1911, Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre Museum in Paris, France by Vincenzo Peruggia. This incident is what sparked the world’s fascination with the soft smile of an ordinary woman. Though the painting was already well-known among the art world, the heist drew an enormous amount of attention to da Vinci’s work. It is now considered to be the most famous painting in the world. But how could one man steal such a painting from the largest art museum in the world? More interestingly, why would Peruggia choose to steal the Mona Lisa of all the priceless pieces that make up the Louvre’s collection?

The Mona Lisa has had quite a history as it dates back to the early 1500s. Throughout the centuries there has been much speculation on the subject of the painting—ranging from da Vinci’s secret lover to da Vinci himself dressed as a woman. However, in 2005 it was discovered with certainty that the woman in the painting is Lisa del Giocondo, a noble woman of Florence, Italy. The portrait was commissioned by her husband, Francesco Giocondo, an Italian silk merchant and statesman as a gift to celebrate the couple’s new home and birth of their son. If all was done by Italians for Italians, how did the painting become property of the French government?

Though commissioned by the Giocondos, the painting never made it to the walls of their family home. Instead it became da Vinci’s favorite work – he continued to add small details here and there for many years after he was commissioned in 1503. Later, in 1517 da Vinci was invited to France by King Francis I. Among da Vinci’s things during his travels were many sketch books and unfinished works, including the Mona Lisa. While in France he continued to work on the painting, but just two years later in 1519 da Vinci died at the age of 67 likely from a stroke. Upon da Vinci’s death, Melzi, da Vinci’s apprentice, became the executor of the estate and sold the Mona Lisa to the French king for 4,000 gold coins. It adorned the walls of the Palace at Fontainebleau until King Louis XIV moved the portrait to the Palace of Versailles. After the French Revolution it was moved to the Louvre Museum where it remained until its mysterious disappearance in 1911. The only two suspects, Guillaume Apollinaire and Pablo Picasso, were cleared after a police investigation.

Thousands of patrons flocked to the Louvre upon its reopening nine days after the theft only to see the blank space where the portrait had once been. The news of the scandal had garnered a massive amount of worldwide attention, making the Mona Lisa the first painting to be seen and shared globally, thus boosting its fame to a household name. The portrait remained missing for two years as leads ran cold until police received a tip from Alfredo Geri, an antique dealer in Florence, Italy. The painting had made its back to its birthplace approximately 400 years after it was commissioned, but why would the thief choose to sell the painting in Italy less than 800 miles away from where it was stolen?

For the crime’s mastermind, Vincenzo Peruggia, stealing the Mona Lisa was a matter of patriotism. Peruggia believed the painting to be stolen from Italy by France during the Napoleonic Era and it was up to him to return the portrait to its rightful place.

The Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci
Credit: Musée du Louvre

Vincenzo Peruggia; mugshot and fingerprints
Credit: Getty Images

Though Peruggia could have stolen a trove of other priceless pieces of art for the sole purpose of getting rich, the Italian man chose the Mona Lisa in order to reunite it with his home country. In fact, after his trial Peruggia was hailed as a hero in Italy, and the Italian court treated him with leniency. Peruggia served only seven months in jail for his crime, which is known today as the greatest art heist of all time. So, how did he manage to get the painting out of the museum and keep it under wraps for two years?

Vincenzo Peruggia worked at the museum for a while as a handyman. Knowing that the museum was closed to patrons on Mondays Peruggia spent Sunday night in a storage closet. On Monday morning Peruggia pulled the painting from the wall and out of its protective casing and frame. He put the painting under his white workman’s smock and left the scene. The portrait was not noted as missing until the following day as the museum encompasses 15 acres and only employed approximately 150 security officers at the time. Peruggia kept the painting in his Paris apartment for two years until he decided to try his luck in the Italian art market. This was when antiques expert Alfredo Geri agreed to verify the authenticity of the painting as Peruggia attempted to sell the masterpiece under a fake name. Once the painting was identified as the original, Geri tipped off the police and Peruggia was taken into custody and tried for his crime. Again, putting the portrait back into international headlines.

Though the painting was already famous in its own right, the heist certainly intrigued millions across the world drawing in approximately 30,000 tourists daily to the museum. The portrait has a certain appeal even for those who are not dedicated to the world of art as all interpretations of the Mona Lisa over time have been diverse, from seductive and mysterious to shy and virtuous. Take a look, what do you see?