"On Christmas Eve 1978, burglars stole tens of millions worth of paintings from the de Young Museum. This is their story, though the Rembrandt painting they stole ended up being worth little, because Rembrandt didn't paint it. When we think theft and "Christmas," our thoughts inevitably turn to the infamous French Laundry Christmas wine heist of 2014, where the famed Napa Valley restaurant was robbed of $550,000 worth of fine wine. That thieves were eventually caught."
"The theft occurred sometime on Christmas Eve between 5 pm, and Christmas Day at 9:15 am, when staff noticed there were four paintings missing from the de Young's Gallery 12. The burglars' great prize was Rembrandt's "Portrait of a Rabbi," at the time worth about $1 million, but they also managed to steal "Interior of the Church of St. Lawrence in Rotterdam" by Anthonie de Lorme, "Harbor Scene" by Willem van de Velde, and "River Scene at Night" by Aert van der Neer."
On Christmas Eve 1978 burglars stole four paintings from the de Young Museum, making off with what was believed to be a Rembrandt and three Dutch landscapes. The theft occurred between 5 pm and 9:15 am the next morning, when staff discovered the works missing from Gallery 12. The paintings taken included 'Portrait of a Rabbi' attributed to Rembrandt, and works by Anthonie de Lorme, Willem van de Velde, and Aert van der Neer. Over time historians determined the Rembrandt attribution was incorrect, reducing its value. The museum was covered with scaffolding for the Treasures of Tutankhamun exhibit, creating security vulnerabilities. Museum officials later acknowledged security was inadequate by modern standards.
Read at sfist.com
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