11. Nativity with St. Francis and St. Lawrence by Caravaggio has been top of the FBI’s most-wanted stolen works of arts since it was taken from a Sicilian church in 1969
For more than 40 years, detectives and amateur sleuths alike have been trying to find Caravaggio’s famous altarpiece. Not for nothing has this topped the list of the FBI’s “Most-wanted stolen works of art” ever since it was snatched from a church in Sicily back in 1969. Some investigators, including one notable journalist, claim that they have come close to getting the Caravaggio back. For now, however, it remains lost. And, what’s more, some believe that it may have been lost for good.
The huge artwork – it measures six square metres – was painted by the Italian Baroque master Caravaggio back in 1609. In accordance with the terms of the commission, as soon as the artist had completed the work in Rome, it was sent to Palermo in Sicily. There Nativity with St. Francis and St. Lawrence was placed above the altar. It remained there for hundreds of years. But then, in October 1969, two unknown men broke into the church, cut the painting out of its wooden frame and vanished, taking the masterpiece with them.
The theft made headlines around the world. The Italian government tried in vain to find it. At the same time, authorities and auction houses around the world were put on high alert. However, the Caravaggio has never been found. Most theories have it that the local Sicilian Mafia was behind the theft. Perhaps a mob boss ordered it to be taken, or maybe a lowly mafia crew member took it to give to a superior as a gift. Nobody can say for sure. Even when a mafia informant came forward to admit that the organized family had been behind the theft but the painting had since been destroyed, the authorities weren’t completely convinced.
It could be that Nativity with St. Francis and St. Lawrence is hidden away in the home of a wealthy private collector. Or maybe it was fed to pigs as one mafia informer claimed. But if it does turn up, there can be no doubt that it would be the biggest discovery in the art world for decades. Plus, the painting would likely fetch more than $20 million at a legitimate auction.