Does the name Vincenzo Peruggia ring a bell? Probably not. But you are no doubt familiar with the 1911 theft of the “Mona Lisa,” the most notorious art heist ever. Well, he was the chap who stole it. Pretty easy to do back in the days when security cameras weren’t a thing and dinosaurs (probably) still roamed the earth. Anyway, after keeping it stashed in his Paris apartment for two years, Signore Peruggia tried to sell it to an antiques dealer who alerted the police because, well, duh. The portrait was returned to the Louvre in 1914, where 30,000 visitors per day can catch a glimpse of this overrated painting.
