Biggest Art Heist in History? $500 million in 81 Minutes (Episode #38)

Mysterious Pals

The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum heist, valued at $500 million, is one of the most notorious art thefts in history. It occurred in the early hours of March 18, 1990, when two men dressed as Boston police officers gained entry to the museum and spent 81 minutes stealing 13 pieces of art. The stolen works included both high-profile pieces and lesser-known ones. Some theories suggest it was partly an inside job by a disgruntled worker, while others believe it was orchestrated by Boston mobsters, or possibly just perpetuated by a wealthy art collector. None of the stolen pieces have been recovered, and the case remains unsolved.

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EPISODE RESOURCES

• Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. “The Theft.” Www.gardnermuseum.org, www.gardnermuseum.org/about/theft-story.
• ‌Flynn, Sheila. “Can a Haunted Man and $10m Reward Solve the World’s Biggest Art Heist?” The Independent, 19 Mar. 2023, www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/isabella-gardner-museum-boston-heist-b2303556.html.
• ‌“What Was the Biggest Art Theft in History?” TheCollector, 12 Jan. 2024, www.thecollector.com/biggest-art-theft-in-history/.
• ‌“Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum Theft.” Wikipedia, 21 Apr. 2022, en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isabella_Stewart_Gardner_Museum_theft.
• ‌McGreevy, Nora. “Five Things to Know about the Gardner Museum Heist—the Biggest Art Theft in Modern History.” Smithsonian Magazine, 9 Apr. 2021, www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/five-things-know-about-isabella-stewart-gardner-art-heist-180977448/.
• ‌Bostonmagazine.com, 2024, www.bostonmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2013/03/0211Boston-Heist-FINAL-2.jpg
• ‌The Heist – Stephen Kurkjian. stephenkurkjian.com/the-heist/.
• ‌Cascone, Sarah. “Isabella Stewart Gardner Heist Solved by FBI.” Artnet News, 31 Mar. 2015, news.artnet.com/art-world/isabella-stewart-gardner-heist-solved-283368.
• ‌Ward, Bob. “New England Unsolved: How a Lynn Murder Is Providing a New Lead in Gardner Art Heist Investigation.” Boston 25 News, 22 Feb. 2022, www.boston25news.com/news/local/new-england-unsolved-how-lynn-murder-is-providing-new-lead-gardner-art-heist-investigation/NVS6SKXQMVHDLLOMAKDJVGCFAU/.
• This is a Robbery: The World’s Biggest Art Heist. Directed by Colin Barnicle, performances by Shelley Murphy, Anne Hawley, and Dick Ellis, Barnicle Brothers, Netflix, 2021.

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