The remains of canvas and paint


Nooooooooooooooooooooo.

Some thieves stole seven paintings from a Rotterdam museum. The paintings have probably been burned up in a stove.

Noooooooooooooooooooooooooo.

Ash from an oven owned by a woman whose son is charged with stealing seven multimillion-pound paintings, including works by Matisse, Picasso and Monet, contained paint, canvas and nails, a Romanian museum official said on Wednesday.

The discovery could be evidence that Olga Dogaru was telling the truth when she claimed to have burned the paintings, which were taken from Rotterdam’s Kunsthal gallery last year in a daylight heist.

Ernest Oberlander-Tarnoveanu, director of Romania‘s National History Museum, told the Associated Press that museum forensic specialists had found small fragments of painting primer, the remains of canvas and paint, and copper and steel nails, some of which pre-dated the 20th century.

“We discovered a series of substances which are specific to paintings and pictures,” he said, including lead, zinc and azurite.

I was furious about the Bamiyan Buddhas. I’m furious about this. Gah.

Via PZ.

 

Comments

  1. Stevarious, Public Health Problem says

    No! Why? Why would they do that?? Why would she burn them???

    This is absolutely horrifying.

  2. Stevarious, Public Health Problem says

    Especially the Monet. That was the specific painting that made me realize years ago that art had value, and that it wasn’t just ‘primitive photography’. All of my appreciation of art stems from that painting.

    I thought when they were stolen that at least they would be in some private collector’s vault, at least they would continue to exist…

    Awww…. This is the worst possible outcome….

  3. Claire Ramsey says

    I am angry and pissed off about those two Monet drawings. Idiotic thieves, stupid stupid idiots.

  4. latsot says

    The world is poorer without those works. Everyone in the world has lost something. Not that we atheists are allowed to care about art, of course.

  5. latsot says

    Especially the Monet

    I second that. Waterloo Bridge, London is just exquisite. Think of how many people might have been impressed by the beauty, inspired by the skill or embiggoned by the extraordinary vision. Now they might not be.

    Godless and materialist we might be but we know the value of artifacts. I have a garden full of plants, I didn’t put a big picture of some plants on my window. I have the actual picture of batman my nephew drew for my 40th birthday in a frame where I can see it every day as well as the digital copies (and by the way it is AWESOME http://twitpic.com/abxgdz). I wear a wedding ring. I wear a watch my wife bought me. I own a ridiculous car because i love it.

    Destroying these works makes the world worse.

  6. Acolyte of Sagan says

    latsot, yep, a truly awesome Batman (I have one of me, done by my 3-year old grandson, that is basically a beard with legs and arms, and is my favourite piece of arwork) but please do tell, what is the ridiculous car you own?

  7. latsot says

    @acolyte:

    A limited edition MGF. There are endless problems with it, but I love it.

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