The Scream recovered 1994
On May 7, 1994, Norway’s most famous painting, “The Scream” by
Edvard Munch, was recovered almost three months after it was stolen from
a museum in Oslo. Thefragile painting was recovered undamaged at a
hotel in Asgardstrand, about 40 miles south of Oslo, police said.
The iconic 1893 painting of a waiflike figure on a bridge was stolen
in only 50 seconds during a break-in on February 12, the opening day of
the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer. Two thieves broke through a
window of the National Gallery, cut a wire holding the painting to the
wall and left a note reading “Thousand thanks for the bad security!”
A few days after the theft, a Norwegian anti-abortion group said it
could have the painting returned if Norwegian television showed an
anti-abortion film. The claim turned out to be false. The government
also received a $1 million ransom demand on March 3, but refused to pay
it due to a lack of proof that the demand was genuine.
Eventually, police found four pieces of the painting’s frame in
Nittedal, a suburb north of Oslo, and what may have been a cryptic
messages that the thieves wanted to discuss a ransom. Finally, in
January 1996, four men were convicted and sentenced in connection with
the theft. Theyincluded Paal Enger, who had been convicted in 1988 of
stealing Munch’s “The Vampire” in Oslo. Enger was sentenced this time to
six-and-a-half-years in prison. He escaped while on a field trip in
1999, andwas captured 12 days later in a blond wig and dark sunglasses
trying to buy a train ticket to Copenhagen.
In August 2004, another version of “The Scream” was stolen along with
Munch’s “The Madonna,” this time from the Munch Museum in Oslo. Three
men were convicted in connection with that theft in May 2006. Police
recovered both works in August with minor marks and tears. Yet another
version of “The Scream” remained in private hands and sold on May 2,
2012, for $119.9 million, becoming the most expensive work of art to
sell at auction.
Munch developed an emotionally charged style that served as an
important forerunner of the 20th century Expressionist movement. He
painted “The Scream” as part of his “Frieze of Life” series, in which
sickness, death, fear, love and melancholy are central themes. He died
in January 1944 at the age of 81.
(More Events on This Day in History)
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Automotive
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Civil War
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Cold War
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Crime
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Disaster
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General Interest
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- 1915 Lusitania sinks
- 1954 French defeated at Dien Bien Phu
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Hollywood
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Literary
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Music
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Old West
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Presidential
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Sports
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Vietnam War
- 1954 French fall to Viet Minh at Dien Bien Phu
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World War I
- 1915 German submarine sinks Lusitania
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World War II
- 1945 Germany surrenders unconditionally to the Allies at Reims
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