Criminalia

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The Legend of The Horses of St. Mark’s Dec 06, 2022

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No one knows when Emperor Constantine installed the gilded Triumphal Quadriga sculpture in his new capital city, Constantinople, near the triumphal arch which led to the Hippodrome. How it got to Constantinople has been lost to the ages, and, so is its origin story. What we do know is these four horses have traveled from Chios to Constantinople; to Venice, Paris, and back to Venice again, with some interesting stops along the way. This sculpture is best known as The Horses of St. Mark’s, and what we do know about it begins after it was stolen during the Sack of Constantinople, in April of 1204.

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The Ghent Altarpiece: Chasing the Lost 'Just Judges' Panel Nov 29, 2022

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Napoleon once stole several of its panels. The Nazis; they took the whole thing. The Ghent Altarpiece, also known as Adoration of the Mystic Lamb, has been the victim of more than a dozen crimes, including several thefts. Commissioned in the 15th century, it is, today, considered the most famous Flemish painting from the Renaissance period. Since it's completion, though, the work has been cut in half, nearly damaged in fire, and hidden in salt mines -- and part of it's still missing today. It's kind of a miracle it's made it this far through history.

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The Skylight Caper: Canada's Biggest Unsolved Art Heist Nov 22, 2022

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One the world's greatest unsolved art thefts happened in Montréal, Québec, Canada, in 1972. Seventeen paintings remain missing, and the cat burglars behind the incident have never been apprehended. In fact, the story sounds a lot like a Hollywood script. Under the cover of darkness, three men entered the building through the one skylight that was under repair, and rappelled into the museum galleries below. It was, it's agreed, a very cinematic theft.

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Who Was Jacob de Gheyn III and Why Do People Keep Stealing His Portrait? Nov 15, 2022

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“We have some bad news, sir. The Rembrandt is gone again,” the investigating officer told the gallery director at the Dulwich Picture Gallery. Rembrandt painted during the 17th century, and as part of his completed works you’ll find a portrait of a man named Jacob de Gheyn III, an engraver who commissioned the painting. The piece has since been nicknamed, the Takeaway Rembrandt, because it’s been stolen so many times – four times, so far, and from the same gallery. And here's its story.

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Title Who Really Stole Goya's 'The Duke'? Nov 08, 2022

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Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, is probably best remembered for his defeat of Napoleon at Waterloo. A military general, he became a leading military and political figure of 19th-century Britain. And, his portrait, painted by Goya, also became a target of theft from the National Gallery in London – though not for reasons any of us might image. The Duke was once quoted as saying, “The only thing I am afraid of is fear.” We wonder, though, how he felt about ... ransom?

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The Day Polish Pirates Pinched the Last Judgment Nov 01, 2022

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For some, the Book of Revelation in the New Testament of the Christian bible is an apocalyptic prophecy, involving the second coming of Christ and the judgment of souls. And the imagery for that interpretation is seen in artwork over the centuries, including The Last Judgment triptych. You may wonder, but which one? And you're right -- there are actually several Last Judgments. But only one has been stolen -- by pirates.

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The Heist That Turned the Mona Lisa Into a Star Oct 25, 2022

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Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa has been described as, “the best known, the most visited, the most written about, the most sung about, the most parodied work of art in the world.” She's been immortalized in everything from Andy Warhol’s pop art to Dan Brown’s bestselling novel, The Da Vinci Code. But there was a time when the Mona Lisa was not well known, if you can imagine – and it took a man named Vincenzo Peruggia to launch her into stardom.

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The Time 5 Thieves Paid an Entrance Fee to Steal 9 Paintings Oct 18, 2022

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Art heists can often look and sound like something out of a Hollywood script. One time, two thieves lifted two Van Gogh paintings from the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, and they entered the premises through the roof -- Mission Impossible-style … ish. In this new season of Criminalia, we’re telling the stories of, and looking at the motivations for, art heists throughout history. In this episode, we’re talking about five men who were brazen enough to buy tickets to a museum and pull off an art heist in broad daylight.

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Did the Sicilian Mafia Really Feed Caravaggio’s Nativity to the Pigs? Oct 11, 2022

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Nativity with St. Francis and St. Lawrence considered a 17th century masterpiece, created by Italian painter Caravaggio in 1609. Nativity has been missing since it was nicked by thieves in Palermo in 1969. No one for sure knows who stole it, or why they stole it, but what might have become of it has sparked dozens of tales. One prominent theory is that it was stolen by the mafia – and, quite possibly, eaten by pigs.

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Welcome to Season 8 of Criminalia: THE ARTNAPPERS Oct 04, 2022

Show notes

The most famous art heist happened in 81 minutes, when two men dressed in law enforcement uniforms stole 13 masterpieces from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston in 1990. But the art heist isn't a recent phenomenon; in fact, it's been part of Western culture since the 1400s. Welcome to a brand new season of Criminalia, where we’ll be telling the stories of bold art thieves who took priceless paintings, sculptures, and other forms of visual art from galleries, museums, as well as from other public and private locations.

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