# @gettyimages on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/B4E5FZ6gh5B
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/16447078-gettyimages-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/thumbnails/d98915e43c.jpg
- **Posted:** 2019-10-26T09:30:05.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** Getty Images (@GettyImages) — https://gondola.cc/GettyImages

## Caption

With the staggering Leonardo da Vinci exhibition now open at the museelouvre, gettyarchive recalls the time the artist’s most famous work was stolen, over a century ago.⁠
In August 1911, the disappearance of the ‘Mona Lisa’ captivated the public as completely as the painting’s enigmatic smile. ⁠
Whisked away from the Paris museum, it was a most sensational crime; with no sign of a break in, police were simply faced with an empty frame. ⁠
As enemies of the art establishment, leaders of the burgeoning avant-garde, including Picasso, were prime suspects. The writer, theorist and critic Guillaume Apollinaire was arrested and questioned for a week.⁠
It was to be over two years, in November 1913, before the real culprit gave himself away. ⁠
Italian Vincenzo Peruggia had hidden in the Louvre on the night before the painting vanished. Carefully removing the poplar panel from its frame, he walked out the next day with the Mona Lisa wrapped up within the white smock worn by all employees.⁠
Believing that the painting had been stolen from Florence by Napoleon (although that’s another story), Peruggia offered the ‘homecoming’ of the 16th century portrait to an Italian gallery - for a substantial reward. ⁠
The petty criminal was duly arrested but served only a short sentence for his crime; when exhibited in Italy, ‘La Gioconda’ drew rapturous crowds who thanked Peruggia for his patriotism. ⁠
If it was celebrated as a masterpiece before, the theft of the ‘Mona Lisa’ made it one of the world’s best-known works of art, transcending fine art to become a pop culture icon.⁠
Here, officials gather around the painting upon its return to Paris on 4th January, 1914.⁠
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📷: Paul Thompson/FPG/Archive Photos/Getty Images | #gettyarchive ⁠
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#monalisasmile #monalisa #davinci #leonardodavinci #lagioconda #arthistory #historyofart #louvremuseum #louvre #louvreparis #renaissanceart #museelouvre #crimeofthecentury #vincenzoperuggia #onthisday #onthisdayinhistory #nostalgia #vintagephoto #vintageprint #photoarchive #archivephoto #picturelibrary #historyphoto #historyinphotos #gettyimages

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## Tags

leonardodavinci, nostalgia, historyofart, louvremuseum, lagioconda, monalisasmile, renaissanceart, vincenzoperuggia, photoarchive, louvreparis, gettyimages, archivephoto, monalisa, davinci, louvre, arthistory, historyinphotos, vintageprint, picturelibrary, crimeofthecentury, vintagephoto, onthisdayinhistory, onthisday, museelouvre, historyphoto, gettyarchive

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