Althalus Posted August 27, 2003 #1 Share Posted August 27, 2003 LONDON (Reuters) - Thieves have stolen a priceless painting by Leonardo Da Vinci from a private collection in a Scottish castle, police say. "Madonna of the Yarnwinder," believed to have been painted in the first decade of the 16th century, was taken from Drumlanrig castle in southern Scotland at around 11 a.m. on Wednesday. The collection was open to the public at the time and police said it appeared the thieves simply walked in and removed the painting from the wall. They said they wanted to trace a white Volkswagen car in connection with the robbery. "The car... contained four men, one of them wearing a large white hat," they added in a statement. Painted in oil on wood, the picture depicts the Madonna seated against a dramatic outdoor backdrop. Christ sits on her lap holding a wooden winder, used to wrap yarn, which is shaped like a crucifix. Leonardo is thought to have worked on the painting between 1500 and 1510 for Florimand Robertet, Secretary of State to French King Louis XII. Art expert David Lee said the painting would theoretically fetch millions of pounds but would be impossible to sell. "It would fetch telephone numbers if it were optioned for sale," he told Sky Television News. "The problem of course with stealing a picture like this is that you can't possibly sell it. "You'd have more chance selling the crown jewels than selling this." Yahoo News Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheOracle Posted August 28, 2003 #2 Share Posted August 28, 2003 The thing that breaks my heart most about this is that the people who do this sort of thing and most likely the people who want it do not in the slightest degree appreciate the work of art. They think of it as nothing more than $$$$$ . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lionel Posted August 28, 2003 #3 Share Posted August 28, 2003 For those that are Intrested, here is the painting. Isnt it beautiful ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lil_kanga77 Posted August 28, 2003 #4 Share Posted August 28, 2003 What's the point? They can't really sell it. And if someone does buy it, they can't display it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bizarro Posted August 28, 2003 #5 Share Posted August 28, 2003 they can't display it publicly, but they will display it. someone paid the thieves to get it for their personal collection. art collecting is all about ego. having something someone else doesn't have is very important. just having that piece will make someone's collection and stroke their ego constantly. someday, many years from now, they might even show someone and get caught Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starlyte Posted August 28, 2003 #6 Share Posted August 28, 2003 Sounds like an excerpt straight out of the movie "Entrapment". Everyone made excellent points. The people who did this have absolutely no respect for art. It is a beautiful painting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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