Warhol prints stolen in 'amateurish' heist, 2 more damaged in escape from Dutch gallery
Thieves in the Netherlands used explosives to open the doors of an art gallery on Friday, leaving with two unusual screens by American pop artist Andy Warhol.
According to the owner of MPV Gallery, Mark Peet Visser, the suspects also left two other damaged works on the road when they fled.
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Visser shared with the Associated Press that the suspects attempted to steal four works from Warhol's 1985 “Reigning Queens” series. Warhol's portraits include renderings of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, and Queen Ntombi Tfwala of Swaziland (now Eswatini).
A man takes a photo of a screen print depicting Queen Elizabeth II, one of a series of sixteen prints of four queens titled Reigning Queens, 1985, by Andy Warhol at the Paleis Het Loo museum in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands, Oct. 9, similar to the Warhol work stolen from a gallery in Oisterwijk, the Netherlands, on Friday. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
In a telephone interview with the Associated Press, Visser called the scam “a rarity.” Visser recounted that the entire robbery was recorded on security cameras.
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He said, “The bombing was so violent that my whole building was destroyed, and the shops nearby were also damaged. So they did that part of it well, very well actually. Then they ran to the car with the pictures, and it turned out they wouldn't get into the car.”
People look at a screen print depicting Queen Elizabeth II, one of a series of sixteen prints of four queens titled Reigning Queens, 1985, by Andy Warhol at the Paleis Het Loo museum in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands, Oct. 9, a similar Warhol work was stolen from a gallery in Oisterwijk, the Netherlands, early Friday. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
“At that time, the jobs were taken out of the private sector, and you know they were damaged beyond repair, because it's impossible for them to be taken out unscathed,” added Visser.
The stolen portraits included those of Queen Elizabeth II and Queen Margrethe II, while damaged portraits of Queen Beatrix and Queen Ntombi Tfwala were left on the street.
Screen prints depicting Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, part of a series of sixteen prints of four queens titled Reigning Queens, 1985, by Andy Warhol. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
Visser declined to estimate the number of signed, numbered works, which he planned to display as a set at an upcoming Amsterdam art fair.
The police are busy with the investigation and are appealing for witnesses in the case. Forensic experts examined the vandalized gallery on Friday.
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Mark Peet Visser with MPV Gallery did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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