WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE
?
The Stolen Beauty
Mona Lisa
The Hapless Thief
Vincenzo Peruggia
The Replica
Isleworth Mona Lisa
The Art Dealer
Hugh Blaker
The Millionaire
Henry F. Pulitzer
THE (MOSTLY) TRUE STORY
of the greatest art theft in modern history
PARIS, 1911
The Louvre had one of the largest fine art collections in the world
THE MONA LISA
was not particularly famous
UNTIL THE JANITOR
quit his job at the Louvre and walked out with her in broad daylight
THE FRENCH POLICE
were pissed
BUT NO ONE
knew where she was
RUMORS
of the missing painting spread across the globe
SOMERSET, 1913
An art dealer named Hugh Blaker found a replica in an English manor
HE WAS CONVINCED
she was real
IT WAS HARD TO TELL
because she looked like the one in the newspapers
UNTIL THE MISSING MONA LISA
showed up in Florence, Italy
AND THE CASE WAS CLOSED
so everyone forgot about the other painting
EXCEPT HUGH BLAKER
who had fallen in love with her
AND THIS RICH GUY
who would swindle him out of her later on
AND LEONARDO DA VINCI
who painted her with his own hand in 1503
THE REPLICA
was Da Vinci’s first draft, painted 15 years earlier
THIS IS HER STORY
