The painting by Leonardo da Vinci stolen from the Louvre in 1911 was the Mona Lisa.
The theft occurred on 21 August 1911, when Vincenzo Peruggia, a Louvre employee who had helped construct the painting’s protective case, removed it from the museum. He reportedly hid in the building and carried the panel out beneath his clothing after closing time. The disappearance was noticed the following day, and the Louvre closed for a week during the investigation.
The crime created an international sensation and helped turn the painting into a global celebrity. Investigators briefly suspected figures including the poet Guillaume Apollinaire and Pablo Picasso, but both were cleared. Peruggia kept the painting in his Paris apartment for about two years before trying to sell it in Florence.
He was arrested after contacting Giovanni Poggi, director of the Uffizi Gallery. The painting was exhibited in Italy before returning to the Louvre on 4 January 1914. The Mona Lisa is sometimes confused with Leonardo’s Last Supper, but that mural remains in Milan.