The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum’s Board of Trustees voted to extend its $10 million reward for information that leads directly to the successful return of 13 works of art stolen from the Museum in 1990.
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum's Board of Trustees Extends $10 Million Reward for Return of 13 Works of Stolen Art
BOSTON (January 2018) - The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum’s Board of Trustees voted to extend its $10 million reward for information that leads directly to the successful return of 13 works of art stolen from the Museum in 1990.
“This reward demonstrates the commitment of the Museum and its Board of Trustees to the recovery of these important works,” said Steve Kidder, President of the Gardner Museum’s Board. “We are the only buyer for these works, and they belong in their rightful home.”
In 1997, the Museum increased its reward offer from $1 million to $5 million, making it the largest private reward in the world at that time. Last May, the Board agreed to increase the reward again to $10 million with a deadline of Dec. 31, 2017. The strategy generated some very good leads that continue to be pursued.
“One good piece of information might just lead us to a recovery. We are looking for quality, not quantity — and facts, not theories,” said Anthony Amore, the Museum’s Director of Security. “We hope anyone with knowledge that might further our work will come forward.”
The reward is fully backed by the Museum and its Board of Trustees. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Museum directly, and complete confidentiality is guaranteed.
In the early morning hours of March 18, 1990, a pair of thieves disguised as Boston police officers entered the Gardner Museum and left with 13 works of art including Vermeer’s painting, The Concert, Rembrandt’s Christ in the Storm on the Sea of Galilee and A Lady and Gentleman in Black, Manet’s Chez Tortoni, and Edgar Degas’ Leaving the Paddock.
It remains the largest art heist in history with more than $500 million of artwork taken from the Museum. The Concert, one of only 36 paintings by Vermeer, and Rembrandt’s Christ in the Storm on the Sea of Galilee, his only known seascape, are considered amongst the most valuable stolen objects in the world.
“Typically, stolen masterpieces are either recovered soon after a theft or a generation later,” Amore said. “We remain optimistic that these works will ultimately be recovered.”
The Museum will release its first-ever book about the theft called, “Stolen” in March 2018. It is designed to be a pictorial essay and guide of the 13 missing works of art. Anyone with information should contact Anthony Amore by calling (617) 278-5114 or emailing theft@gardnermuseum.org.
For more information please visit gardnermuseum.org/resources/theft.
For images of missing works, please click here.