logo
episode-header-image
Aug 2021
29m 5s

The Man Who Stole the Mona Lisa

The HISTORY® Channel | Back Pocket Studios
About this episode

August 21, 1911. On a Monday morning, a department store employee on a Paris street sees a man hurrying by. He carries a white-wrapped package and, as the employee watches, he throws something small and shiny over his shoulder...it’s a doorknob. Then the man disappears into the streets of Paris. That store employee has just witnessed a small part of what will soon become the world’s most famous crime. In that white-wrapped package was...the Mona Lisa. Why has the Mona Lisa enchanted so many people since the 1500s? And how did a struggling Italian handyman manage to steal it?


Thank you to our guests, Martin Kemp, author of Mona Lisa. The People and the Painting, and Dr. Noah Charney, founder of the Association for Research into Crimes against Art.


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Up next
Jul 10
Operation Mincemeat Revisited | Episode + Bonus Interview with Natasha Hodgson
When we first aired "Operation Mincemeat" back in 2020, it was a daring WWII thriller that felt almost too wild to be true. Now, it’s not just history — it’s a hit Broadway musical. This week, we're revisiting our original episode about the ingenious Allied ruse that helped turn ... Show More
54m 46s
Jul 7
Superman Takes Flight
July 7, 1938. Superman has the villain in his grasp. They soar through the air, then slam into the ground. This villain wants to start a war. Our hero won’t let that happen. At this point, Superman only has two comic book appearances. And yet, his legend is already beginning to g ... Show More
39m 14s
Jun 30
The Colosseum Becomes a Wonder | A Conversation with Barry Strauss & Alison Futrell
July 7, 2007. In a dramatic ceremony featuring pop stars, fireworks, and smoke cannons, the Colosseum is named one of the seven new wonders of the world. It’s an appropriately over-the-top blowout for an arena which, centuries before, was home to its own lavish events. How did sp ... Show More
37m 23s
Recommended Episodes
Feb 2023
The Mona Lisa
Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa is the most famous painting in the world. 500 years old and just 77x53cm in size, it is kept behind bulletproof glass in the Louvre museum in Paris, where it draws 10 million visitors a year. But how did a small portrait find global fame? Who is the ... Show More
54m 50s
Dec 2022
Let’s Steal the Mona Lisa!
Mayhem, chaos and international hijinks ensue after three Italian brothers, led by their super-patriotic older brother, break into the Louvre and steal the Mona Lisa for the glory of Italia. The frantic French police search high and low for the stolen masterpiece, they even drag ... Show More
52m 34s
Feb 2018
Mona Lisa – Behind the World’s Most Famous Smile
We’re all familiar with her face… the famous Mona Lisa, a painting by Leonardo da Vinci that has intrigued people for centuries. But who inspired such a mysterious, celebrated artwork? We explore the the rich history of the painting, its creator, and the various people who may ju ... Show More
36 m
May 2024
Did Picasso try to Steal the Mona Lisa?
How did the Mona Lisa get so famous? Why doesn't she have any eyebrows? And why was Picasso investigated for the painting's theft? This episode Will and Mango go deep on the smirking beauty and try to figure out what's really going on behind that sly smile.  ... Want to get in to ... Show More
30m 31s
Nov 2023
Introducing The Professor: Hunting for the Mafia's Missing Masterpiece
William Veres is in trouble. In 2018 he was arrested following the largest ever investigation by the Italian police’s art squad. They accuse him of running an art-smuggling ring with ties to the Sicilian mafia. He is alleged to have stolen $40 million worth of art and antiquities ... Show More
2m 39s
Feb 2024
653: Crime Scene
Every crime scene hides a story. In this week's show, we hear about crime scenes and the stories they tell. Medical Examiner D.J. Drakovic, in Pontiac Michigan, explains how every crime scene is like a novel. (5 minutes)Act One: Reporter Nancy Updike spends two days with Neal Smi ... Show More
1 h
Mar 2024
From The Professor: Hunting for the Mafia's Missing Masterpiece
William Veres is in trouble. He's been arrested following the largest ever investigation by the Italian police’s art squad. They accuse him of running an $40 million art-smuggling ring with ties to the Sicilian mafia – charges that could get him jailed for 20 years. But Veres has ... Show More
40m 12s