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Boston University College of Arts and Sciences Acceptance Rate

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The biggest fine art theft in history occurred at the Isabella Gardner Stewart Museum, in Boston, Massachusetts. On March 18, 1990, ii burglars broke into the museum and made off with 13 works of art, worth half a billion dollars. Despite a thorough investigation and several promising leads, the Gardner theft remains unsolved to this mean solar day. While the details of the theft accept been widely publicized, many folks don't know much about the history of the museum and the incredible woman who started information technology all.

Gardner established the popular art museum in Boston to concur her massive and valuable art drove. The museum is home to over vii,500 pieces of art, including paintings, furniture, silverish, sculptures, textiles, ceramics and 1,500 rare books. The majority of the masterpieces came from aboriginal Rome, Medieval Europe, Renaissance Italy and Asia.

Allow's have a expect at the events that led to Gardner'southward love for art, the museum's beginnings and the largest art heist in history.

Stewart Gardner's Global Upbringing

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

When she turned 16, Gardner moved to Paris with her family and completed her education abroad, assuasive her to learn firsthand well-nigh Renaissance art. In 1858, the family moved back to New York. Soon after, Gardner went to Boston to visit a quondam 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's upper form. Two years subsequently Stewart Gardner met Jack Gardner in Boston, the 2 decided to tie the knot.

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On April 10, 1860, Stewart Gardner and Jack Gardner married at Grace Church building 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 habitation, which was located on the Dorsum Bay's richest street. Shortly after, the Gardner's had a son, John Lowell Gardner 3, born June 18, 1863. The new parents nicknamed their son "Jackie."

Stewart Gardner'south Travel to Heal A Broken Centre

In the mid-1860s, a series of unfortunate events struck Stewart Gardner's life. Her son, Jackie, died from pneumonia at less than 2 years old in 1865. A year later, Stewart Gardner suffered a near-fatal miscarriage and plant out she was unable to accept more than children. Around the same time, her sister-in-police force 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 Russian federation for a year. During the trip, Stewart Gardner's health improved and she created scrapbooks of her adventures.

A Passion For Collecting Art Emerges

Stewart Gardner'due south trip to Europe and Russian federation fabricated her eager to see the remainder of the world. In 1874, the Gardners traveled to the Heart Eastward, Europe and Paris. The couple explored America, Europe and Asia in the tardily 1880s. During their adventures away, the couple gained an fifty-fifty greater cognition of the arts and culture.

The Gardners started collecting art in Europe. When Stewart Gardner inherited $i.75 1000000 from her father, she focused on growing her drove of European fine art. "The Concert" by Johannes Vermeer was one of her first purchases. From Arab republic of egypt to the Far East, the Gardners collected paintings and statues from effectually the earth in the late 1890s. The Gardners also began obtaining tapestries, photographs, silverish and manuscripts during their travels. Venice, Italy, became her favorite metropolis to visit considering artists oft 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 person Associates to Buy Art on Her Behalf

Stewart Gardner became known for her massive art collection, only many people didn't know that her male friends helped her learn some of her pieces. Art historian Bernard Berenson assisted her in acquiring almost 70 pieces alone. 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'due south got a handkerchief over her face up. Her main competitors were the National Gallery in London and the Louvre that day. And they realized they were bidding confronting each other — and then they did a sort of gentlemanly bowing out. Meanwhile, her amanuensis swooped in and bought the picture and suddenly Isabella Stewart Gardner was a well-known name in the art world overnight."

Isabella Built the Museum After Her Husband'southward Death

By 1896, the Gardners discovered their enormous art drove barely fit in their Boston abode. The couple dreamed of building a museum where they could keep their giant drove. Nonetheless, Jack Gardner suddenly died of a stroke in 1898.

Subsequently her husband's decease, Stewart Gardner worked hard 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 upwardly museum models inspired by Venice's Renaissance architecture. While Sears was in charge of constructing the museum, Stewart Gardner dictated the museum'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's Artwork Was Deliberately Arranged to Build a Narrative

For a twelvemonth, Gardner carefully installed each of the items on the commencement three floors of the museum. Every slice was purposely assembled in different rooms to create a story. Gardner wanted to inspire others to fall in dearest with the art, rather than just learn well-nigh the fine art's history. Some pieces didn't even provide information most the painter or date of origin.

Gardner placed Titian's masterpiece "The Rape of Europa" in the Titian Room. The Titian masterpiece sits in a higher place a pocket-sized piece of Stewart Gardner's pale green silk gown designed by Charles Frederick Worth. In the Dutch Room, Gardner organized famous works by European artists such as Peter Paul Rubens, Albrecht Dürer and Hans Holbein.

The Museum'due south Other Items

Non simply did the museum feature famous paintings, but information technology also presented rare books, manuscripts, furniture, tapestries, sculptures and decorative art pieces from the Gardner's travels. Many rooms displayed a mixture of these different pieces from various cultures and periods.

The Early Italian Room highlights Italian Gothic and Renaissance art. These paintings are surrounded past furniture and other decorative articles from unlike 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 carbohydrate basin and a Dutch salt cellar.

Artists Spent Time at the Museum

The m opening of the museum was Jan. ane, 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 commemoration. 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 Vocalizer 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 piece, The Cobra. Stewart Gardner wanted the artists to find inspiration from her beautiful collection and the museum'south Venetian designs.

Standing Her Legacy

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

According to her will, the museum must remain open "for the education and enjoyment of the public forever." Information technology likewise specifies that nothing in the museum tin can exist sold, relocated or removed. The museum was to be maintained the way she left it, meaning new pieces weren't immune either. The collection remained untouched until March 18, 1990 — after xiii pieces valued at $500 meg were stolen.

Suspects Arrived in Fake Law Uniforms

Every bit Bostonians celebrated St. Patrick'due south Day during the early hours of March 18, 1990, ii thieves sat within a reddish Dodge Daytona on Palace Road near the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. The ii men were disguised as police officers and 1 of them had on a fake wax mustache.

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For most an 60 minutes, the two criminals waited in their car to avert the St. Patrick'due south Day party goers. Equally the oversupply dispersed, the two thieves began their elaborate programme. They exited their vehicle, walked to the entrance of the museum and pressed the buzzer near the door at 1:24 a.g.

A Museum Security Guard Let the Thieves In

The museum had ii security guards on duty that night. Later on the first guard, Richard Abath, patrolled the museum, he came dorsum to the front desk to change positions with the other guard. Abath heard the buzzer and saw 2 men outside. They told Abath they were law officers who had heard a mayhem in the museum'south courtyard, and asked to enter the building.

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Although Abath knew that guards weren't immune to open the door to uninvited guests, he wasn't sure if the protocol also applied to police officers. Abath believed the men considering 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 end desk, where Abath was stationed. Ane of the intruders told Abath his face seemed familiar and that there was a warrant for his arrest. Abath, confused, left the front desk surface area, where the just warning button was located. The thieves immediately forced Abath to face up the wall and handcuffed him. Abath idea the abort was a fault, simply quickly noticed the intruders didn't search him before putting him in handcuffs. He also realized i of the thieves wore a fake mustache.

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A few minutes later on, Abath's partner returned to the front desk and the thieves handcuffed him, too. The thieves so 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 offset their heist.

81 Minutes to Complete the Largest Theft in History

The museum'southward motion detectors recorded the thieves' movements. First, the robbers entered the Dutch Room and approached Rembrandt'south "Self-Portrait," but the local alarm went off. The thieves smashed the alarm. After taking the "Self-Portrait" off the wall, the 2 men unsuccessfully tried to remove the painting from its wooden panel. They left the painting on the floor instead.

Photograph Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons

The thieves went on to cut Rembrandt's "Christ in the Storm on the Sea of Galilee" and "A Lady and Gentleman 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 13 pieces throughout the museum including a Chinese Bronze Gu, v Degas drawings, and an hawkeye finial. The robbery occurred in 81 minutes. At 8:fifteen a.m., police arrived at the scene and found the guards tied upwardly in the basement.

The FBI Found No Motive or Pattern

Assertive that the stolen pieces would cross land lines, the FBI quickly took over the example. The FBI idea 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 former museum guards.

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In improver, the FBI worked with many specialists, including elevation private investigators, Japanese and French authorities, museum directors and fine art dealers. Although the FBI collected over a one thousand pages of evidence, the investigation uncovered no single motive or pattern. The FBI agent in accuse of the Stewart Gardner case, Geoffrey J. Kelly, has mentioned that the FBI knew the identities of the criminals, just Kelly didn't say if the suspects remained expressionless or alive. Kelly has provided no farther annotate on the identities.

A Few Theories Nigh the Art Heist Have Surfaced

One theory investigated by the FBI was that the heist was planned and carried out by the Irish Republican Ground forces, with the goal of eventually leveraging data to release their members from prison. A different theory suggested Boston'due south top crime boss, Whitey Bulgar, organized the robbery. The FBI also had a theory that Myles J. Connor Jr. arranged the crime before he became New England's top fine art thief.

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In 2009, the Stewart Gardner Museum's director of security, Anthony Amore, 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. Besides, others say mythical figures take spoken to them about the thefts."

I of the Main Suspects Was Boston Gangster Robert Donati

Boston gangster Robert "Bobby" Donati became the FBI's summit suspect during the investigation. In 1997, Connor claimed Donati was his accomplice in organizing the Gardner robbery. Connor and Donati visited the museum together a few times before the theft. As well earlier the robbery, Donati went to a nightclub called The Shack, where he was seen conveying a purse of law 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. Co-ordinate to the New York Daily News, he may have been a victim in a gang war. The FBI eventually threw out Donati equally a pb doubtable.

Another Master Doubtable Was Robert "Bobby the Melt" Gentile

Gangster Robert "Bobby the Melt" Gentile was also on the FBI's radar every bit a possible suspect. The FBI believed he held some of the paintings from the Gardner Museum heist. In 2012, the FBI raided his habitation in Manchester, Connecticut, after the FBI brought drug charges against Gentile. The FBI constitute aught in the raid except for a listing of how much each stolen slice would cost on the black market. However, Gentile said he was innocent and knew naught about the robbery.

Later on in 2016, the FBI filed gun charges confronting Gentile to force him to talk nearly 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 sentence for ane of Guarente's associates. As well, Guarente'south married woman insisted Gentile possessed a few of the stolen paintings. Gentile's lawyer argued confronting these claims and said that Gentile didn't know anything nearly the heist. In 2018, Gentile was sentenced to 54 months in prison house on gun charges, only still hasn't admitted to any knowledge about the whereabouts of the paintings.

A Few Leads Included a Letter and a New Video

In 1994, museum director Anne Hawley received a letter that assured the return of the stolen pieces for $2.6 meg. The letter writer demanded that the museum go The Boston Globe to print a coded message in the business section. Although the newspaper published the message, the mysterious author disappeared after learning law enforcement were involved.

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On Aug. 6, 2015, the U.South. Chaser'due south Role released a video that was taped the night before the heist at the Gardner Museum. On the six-minute video, two men appear at the entrance of the museum. Ane human was identified equally Abath, the security baby-sit who was tied up during the robbery. The other man remains unknown. Authorities have asked for the public's help to identify him in the footage. The video shows Abath buzzing the unidentified man into the museum twice. The human being stayed in the lobby for a couple of minutes, exited and left in a automobile.

DNA Collected at The Crime Scene Went Missing

After the robbery in 1990, police force 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 bear witness due to recent improvements in DNA assay, hoping the new test would help discover the thieves. However, the prove containing the Dna had disappeared.

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The FBI conducted a search for the offense scene evidence, but it was nowhere to be institute. Investigators don't know when the evidence went missing, but anonymous sources claimed the testify had been gone for over a decade. The FBI also doesn't know if the items were misplaced, stolen or disposed of. The missing evidence became another setback for the Stewart Gardner example, which remains unsolved to this day.

A Truthful-Offense Podcast Investigated the Unsolved Art Heist Mystery

In 2018, WBUR, a public radio station, collaborated with The Boston Globe to produce a ten-part podcast roofing the art heist mystery. The podcast, "Last Seen," covers the robbery, the suspects, people connected to the case and the FBI's investigation.

The team, led by WBUR members Kelly Horan and Jack Rodolico, researched the mystery for a twelvemonth. The podcast features many interviews, including i with security guard Abath and his partner from the night of the crime. The museum'due south director of security, Amore, says, "Things like this podcast that can attain a large audience are important for keeping the story live in people's minds and reminding the public that we're never going to cease looking for the stolen art."

A Documentary and Book Covering the Crime Was Released

In 2005, a documentary motion-picture show called "Stolen" by Rebecca Dreyfus featured the famous heist. The documentary follows fine art detective, Harold Smith, as he looks into the robbery'south investigation and the 13 seized pieces. Smith chats with contemporary authors 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 book also named "Stolen" in 2018. "Stolen" provides information about the 13 stolen works of art and contains essays from key staff members including Affection and Nielsen. Museum guests frequently enquire for more than details on the missing pieces, which inspired the museum to produce "Stolen."

The Famous Heist Is Mentioned Throughout Pop Culture

Many TV shows take featured the crime, including "The Black List," "The Simpsons" and "Drunk History." In "The Blackness Listing," the episode "The Courier" features a criminal named Raymond Reddington looking at Rembrandt's painting "Christ in The Storm on the Bounding main of Galilee."

"The Simpsons" has an episode in which Mr. Burns possesses stolen art from the Stewart Gardner Museum at Burns Manor. Every bit a result, the police abort Mr. Burns and throw him in prison house. In "Drunkard History," the episode "Boston" features two criminals struggling to steal art and doing whatever they can to complete the heist.

Some of the Stolen Paintings

Govaert Flinck'southward "Landscape with an Obelisk" from 1638 is i of the stolen works of art. The robbers took Flinck's painting from the museum's Dutch Room. Many art enthusiasts initially believed the movie belonged to the painter Rembrandt, but they after learned Flinck was the possessor. Dutch painter Flinck was actually a educatee of Rembrandt, who helped influence his piece of work.

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Flinck created "Mural with an Obelisk" using oil on woods. The beautiful painting features a stormy day, a fantasy landscape and an obelisk inspired past ane that's nigh Amsterdam. The flick besides includes a span and a small homo on a horse.

The Painting "Chez Tortoni" Was Some other Missing Piece

Some other missing painting is Édouard Manet'south "Chez Tortoni" from around 1875. The museum'south Bluish 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 young man with a mustache and a pinnacle lid sitting in the Café Tortoni de Paris. The man is belongings a pencil in his hand and writing on newspaper. The man'due south eyes are positioned looking directly at the slice'southward viewer. Additionally, a glass of vino sits on the admirer'due south table. WBUR describes the picture's brush strokes as broad and tactile.

"La Sortie de Pesage" and "Three Mounted Jockeys" by Degas Were Stolen

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

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The thieves as well stole the Degas painting "3 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 2 jockeys are upside down in the painting.

"Plan for an Artistic Soirée" 1 and Two Were Taken

A couple more Degas works that vanished include "Plan for an Creative Soirée" and "Program for an Artistic Soirée, Study 2" from 1884. The criminals removed these Degas drawings from the Curt 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 paper, which features the skirt and legs of a dancer. The drawing as well includes a woman holding an open booklet and a man in a hat and wig next to a musical instrument. The 2nd "Program for an Artistic Soiree" appears more finished than the outset sketch.

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

Yet another Degas, the sketch "Cortege aux Environment de Florence" and a few Rembrandt works were also stolen. "Cortege aux Environment de Florence" used to exist displayed in the Brusque Gallery. Degas drew the artwork with a pencil and used a sepia launder on paper. The sketch illustrates a carriage with horses, a woman with a giant umbrella and 3 women who may exist dancing. He finished this sketch effectually 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 Sea Of Galilee" from 1633. The criminals stole both paintings from the museum's Dutch Room. The thieves also made off with his tiny sketch titled "Portrait Of The Artist As A Beau" from 1633. The sketch features Rembrandt'south serious face with untidy hair. The thieves attempted to seize Rembrandt'south "Self-Portrait" oil painting, only the job was unsuccessful.

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

From the museum'southward Dutch Room, the criminals fabricated off with a Chinese Gu (a bronze beaker) from 12th century BC. Co-ordinate to WBUR, the Gu was one of the most elegant and oldest pieces in the museum. Another item removed from the museum was the statuary French Eagle finial from around 1813. The hawkeye was attached to a flagpole from Napoleon'due south First Regiment of Regal Guard. Although the hawkeye is gone, the flag remains in the museum.

WBUR reports that Vermeer'due south "The Concert" is the rarest and virtually valuable of the stolen works because few of his paintings exist. Vermeer's painting is priced at $200 1000000. "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 collected some promising leads, the identities of the criminals and the whereabouts of the 13 pieces remain a mystery. To this solar day, empty frames of the missing paintings hang on the walls. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum hopes that the stolen pieces volition i twenty-four hour period 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.South. attorney's office continue to search for new leads. The museum encourages anyone with information to reach out to the Stewart Gardner Museum. The museum'south manager says "I've spent more than a decade preparing for any scenario. I'm very ready. I'll get anywhere. I'll meet with the devil for these paintings."

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