FACT SHEET | STOLEN ARTWORKS
Theft of Thirteen Artworks ▪ March 18, 1990
On the night of March 18, 1990, a pair of thieves disguised as Boston police officers entered the Isabella Stewart Gardner
Museum and roamed its galleries, stealing from it thirteen priceless works of art. The stolen artworks include Rembrandt’s
Storm on the Sea of Galilee, the artist’s only known seascape, and Jan Vermeer’s The Concert, one of only 36 known
Vermeers in the world. The Gardner Museum is offering a $5 million reward for information leading to the recovery of
these stolen artworks in good condition. Anyone with information—about the theft, the location of these artworks, or the
investigation—is encouraged to contact the Museum’s Director of Security Anthony Amore directly at 617-278-5114 or
theft@gardnermuseum.org. The Museum can ensure complete confidentiality.
Vermeer, The Concert, 1658–1660
Oil on canvas, 72.5 x 64.7 cm
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One of approximately only 36 known works by Vermeer in the world
The subject is the making of music, suspended in time, at the split second just before song is
about to break out. The figures in this work are intently preoccupied with their music: they
do not look at each other and seem unaware that they are being observed.
This work contains an air of mystery as well—i.e., who are these people and what are their
relationships? Vermeer crafts rather deliberately a sense of mystery in this work. The
reflections of light in the painting also intensify its mystery
This work was Gardner’s first major acquisition, purchased with the help of experts at a
Paris auction sale. Gardner placed it on a table alongside the window, a location where she
often placed her most prized paintings, with a chair in front of it to invite viewing.
Rembrandt, The Storm on the Sea of Galilee, 1633
Oil on canvas, 161.7 x 129.8 cm. Inscribed on the rudder: Rembrandt (sic). f::/1633
ƒ Rembrandt’s only known seascape
ƒ A monumental work in size and intensity; the detailed rendering of the scene, the figures’
varied expressions, the polished brushwork, and the bright coloring are characteristic of
Rembrandt’s early style
ƒ The biblical scene pitches nature against human frailty, both physical and spiritual. Amid the
chaos of the scene, only Christ, at the right, remains calm.
Rembrandt, A Lady and Gentleman in Black, 1633
Oil on canvas, 131.6 x 109 cm. Inscribed at the foot: Rembrandt.ft: 1633
ƒ A double portrait of a lady and gentleman in dramatic black and white dress that stands out
sharply against the neutral background and in contrast to the brilliant red on the chairs and the
pink binding of the lady’s gloves.
ƒ This monumental work hung in a prominent spot in the Dutch Room, visible through its
windows overlooking the court.
ƒ Rembrandt completed this work in his second year in Amsterdam in 1632.
ƒ Gardner acquired this work with the help of friend and advisor Bernard Berenson in 1898.
Rembrandt, Self-Portrait, ca. 1634
Etching, 1 3/4 x 2 in. (Bartsch 2, Rovinski 2, Hind 57)
ƒ A small etching nearly the size of a postage stamp, also referred to as Portrait of the Artist
as a Young Man, it was completed in 1633 when the artist was 27 years of age.
ƒ The small work was affixed to the side of a carved oak cabinet in the Dutch Room beneath
Rembrandt’s painted Self-Portrait of 1929.
Manet, Chez Tortoni, 1878–1880
Oil on canvas, 26 x 34 cm. Inscribed at the foot on the left: Manet
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This picture shows a jaunty gentleman in a top hat writing in a Parisian café.
Gardner placed this small work on a table beneath the darker and far more somber portrait of
Manet’s mother, shown as a widow in a black veil and a silk dress entirely in black.
The painting is believed to have been painted in the café, Chez Tortoni, located in the Rue
Laffitte, Paris, where Manet frequently lunched.
Govaert Flinck, Landscape with an Obelisk, 1638
Oil on oak panel, 54.5 x 71 cm. Inscribed faintly at the foot on the right: R. 16.8 (until recently
attributed to Rembrandt)
ƒ Long attributed to Rembrandt, this work was recognized in the 1980s as the work of his
pupil, Govaert Flinck.
ƒ Of Rembrandt, Isabella Gardner wrote to her friend and advisor: “I really don’t adore
Rembrandt. I only like him.”
ƒ Gardner placed this work on a table alongside a window, opposite Vermeer’s The Concert.
Five Gouache drawings by Edgar Degas
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Isabella Gardner’s collection contains several works by Degas—including five drawings that
were stolen in 1990.
Gardner placed these works on a wooden cabinet in the Short Gallery.
Degas, La Sortie de Pesage
Pencil and watercolor on paper, 10 x 16 cm
Degas, Three Mounted Jockeys
Black ink, white, flesh and rose washes, probably oil pigments, applied with a brush on
medium brown paper, 30.5 x 24 cm
Degas, Cortège aux Environs de Florence
Pencil and wash on paper, 16 x 21 cm
Degas, Program for an artistic soirée, 1884
Charcoal on white paper, 24.1 x 30.9 cm
Degas, Program for an artistic soirée, 1884
A less-finished version of the above, charcoal on buff paper, 23.4 x 30 cm
Finial in the form of an eagle
gilt metal (bronze), French, 1813–1814
approx. 10 in. high
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This originally sat on the top of the pole support of a silk Napoleonic flag in the Short
Gallery, which was not taken by the thieves.
This is one of two objects taken by the thieves.
The finial is made of bronze, but may have had the appearance of gold to the thieves.
Chinese bronze beaker or Ku
Chinese, Shang Dynasty, 1200–1100 B.C.
H. 10 1/2 in. Diam. 6 1/8 in. Wt. 2 lbs. 7 oz.
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An ancient bronze beaker, this object sat on a table in the Dutch Room.
This is the oldest artwork taken by the thieves and one of only two objects stolen.
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