#1: Van Gogh Museum
In 2002 two men entered the museum, undetected, through the window via ladder and stole two paintings ‘Congregation Leaving the Reformed Church at Nuenen' and ‘View of the Sea at Scheveningen,' approximately worth $20 Million. Neither of these paintings has been recovered yet.
#2: Musee d’Art Moderne
A comparatively recent art heist of 5 contemporary paintings was reported in May 2010 when a masked man entered the museum and left with 5 contemporary masterpieces. These included Picasso's ‘Le Pigeon aux Petits Pois' and Matisse's ‘La Pastorale.'
#3: The Isabella Gardner Museum
Two men impersonating as police, in 1990, conducted this mega heist. They left with $300 Million worth of paintings that included a Manet, Vermeer, a bronze eagle, five sketches by Degas and five Rembrandts. None of these items has been recovered.
#4: Ghent Altarpiece Panel
The van Eyck brothers painted several panels of the Ghent Altarpiece for a cathedral. In 1934, two thieves broke into the cathedral and took away the lower left panel. It was never found again!
#5: Sweden’s National Museum
Sweden's National Museum witnessed a well-planned art heist in 2000. A Rembrandt and two Renoirs were stolen but all three pieces were recovered by 2005.
#6: Madonna of The Yarwinder
Two thieves impersonating as tourists plucked Da Vinci's Madonna off a wall of Drumlanrig Castle. The painting was recovered 4 years later during a raid on a law firm. Eight people were convicted of the theft.
#7: Lady With The Mysterious Smile – Mona Lisa
This famous art heist has been mentioned in various novels, movies and documentaries. In 1911, an amateur painter walked into the Louvre, retrieved the painting from its frame and walked out of the museum with the painting hidden in his clothes. It was recovered 2 years later when the art thief tried to sell it to a prominent art dealer in Florence.
