Francisco de Goya y Lucientes, must be turning in his grave at this moment. His beloved “Children with a Cart” has been stolen. The painting belongs to the Toledo Museum of Art, was stolen while being delivered to the Guggenheim Museum in New York City. It was being loaned to the Guggenheim Museum for its exhibition, “Spanish Painting from El Greco to Picasso: Time, Truth, and History,” which opens this Friday. Though it was insured for $1 million, a reward of up to $50,000 has been announced to the insurer for information leading to Goya’s return. The daring event took place at Scranton, Pa. The details are sketchy because the FBI investigators want to determine whether the leads coming in are accurate or not. The 1778 oil painting was made for the Royal Tapestry Factory of Santa Barbara in Spain illustrating a variety of fashions popular in the late 18th century. In its 105-year history this the first painting lost by the museum. A rude shock for the art world, but this is one of the tragedies they have to cope with.
Almost a year ago, on Nov. 18, 2005, paintings by Andy Warhol and Jackson Pollock were stolen in a sophisticated heist from the Everhart Museum in Scranton.
“At this point, there’s no reason to believe it’s anything more than a coincidence,” said FBI agent Williams, who would not reveal the name of the company transporting the piece.
Anyone with information about the theft can report it to the FBI’s Philadelphia division at 215-418-4000
