The $500 Million Gardner Museum Heist: Have You Seen These Paintings?

The FBI says it knows who made off with $500 million in art from a Boston museum in 1990 — but it can't find the works themselves. There's a $5 million reward for the location of the 13 pieces listed here.

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The Federal Bureau of Investigation announced today that it knows the identity of the thieves who stole 13 works of art from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston more than two decades ago, in what’s widely viewed as the biggest art heist in U.S. history. But the agency is still trying to figure out where those pieces are.

“The FBI believes with a high degree of confidence that in the years after the theft, the art was transported to Connecticut and the Philadelphia region, and some of the art was taken to Philadelphia, where it was offered for sale by those responsible for the theft,” Richard DesLauriers, special agent in charge of the agency’s Boston office, said in a press release. “With that same confidence, we have identified the thieves, who are members of a criminal organization with a base in the Mid-Atlantic states and New England.”

On Mar. 18, 1990, two men dressed as police officers gained entry to the museum, tied up the security officers and swiped 13 works worth an estimated $500 million, according to The Associated Press. They include several sketches by Edgar Degas, The Storm on the Sea of Galilee, the only seascape ever painted by Rembrandt Van Rijn, and The Concert, one of only 36 paintings by Johannes Vermeer that still exists.  Here’s a gallery of the missing work, below; if any of these look familiar, you might want to go ahead and contact the FBI: the agency is offering a $5 million reward to anyone who reports their location.

MORE: After 20 Years, a Break in a Famous Art Heist

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LIST: Crimes of the Century

Édouard Manet, Chez Tortoni:

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FBI

Govaert Flinck, Landscape with Obelisk:

flinck_landscapeobelisk

FBI

Johannes Vermeer, The Concert:

vermeer_the_concert

FBI

Rembrandt van Rijn, A Lady and Gentleman in Black:

rembrandt_ladygentleman

FBI

Rembrandt van Rijn, The Storm on the Sea of Galilee:

rembrandt_stormgalilee

FBI

Rembrandt van Rijn, Self-Portrait:

rembrandt_selfportrait_etch

FBI

Edgar Degas, La Sortie de Pesage:

degas_sortiepesage

FBI

Edgar Degas, Cortege aux Environs de Florence:

degas_cortege

FBI

Edgar Degas, Program for an artistic soiree (1):

degas_program1

FBI

Edgar DegasProgram for an artistic soiree (2)

degas_program2

FBI

Edgar Degas, Three Mounted Jockeys:

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FBI

Bronze Eagle Finial from a Napoleonic battle flag

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FBI
A Chinese Ku, or beaker, from the Shang Dynasty (1200-1100 B.C.)

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Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

LIST: Crimes of the Century