Attempted theft of a Monet with gunfire in a Dutch museum: thieves drop painting

Thieves attempted to steal, fortunately without success, a Monet from a Dutch museum, namely the Zaans Museum in Zandaam. The painting that was the subject of the attempted theft is De Voorzaan en de Westerhem, created in 1871 by the famous artist, father of Impressionism, Claude Monet: the work depicts a seascape with houses and mills on the coast and boats on the water.

The attempted theft occurred Sunday morning; according to witnesses, the two armed robbers tried to leave the museum with the painting, although police have yet to confirm this. The latter also allegedly fired shots, and then as they tried to escape a passerby allegedly intervened. At that moment one of the thieves allegedly dropped the painting, and then both fled on a black motorcycle.

No one was injured and the painting was safely returned to the museum. “We are relieved to say that no one was hurt and that the thieves were not able to steal anything,” the museum office announced. “However, we are very shocked by the incident. We are currently investigating whether the painting was damaged as a result of the accident; this means we cannot exhibit it at the moment.”

Police recovered the abandoned motorcycle in the vicinity of the museum, but are still investigating and looking for the robbers.

Attempted theft of a Monet with gunfire in a Dutch museum: thieves drop painting

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