‘Poppy Flowers’ by Vincent Van Gogh – Lost Art

Painted by Vincent Van Gogh, Poppy Flowers (also known as Vase and Flowers) was stolen from the Mohamed Mahmoud Khalil Museum in Cairo in August 2010. The painting depicts yellow and red poppy flowers against a dark background and is small in size, measuring just 65 x 54 centimeters. It is believed that Van Gogh painted this work three years before his suicide and that it was created out of Van Gogh’s admiration for Adolphe Monticelli. With an estimated value of $50 million, it is no surprise that the painting was targeted by thieves. The robbery in 2010 wasn’t the first time the painting had been snatched; it was stolen from the same museum in June of 1977. Following an extensive search operation, it was found ten years later in Kuwait. A few hours after the second theft in 2010, Egyptian officials and police believed that they had discovered the painting at the Cairo International Airport when two suspects attempted to board a plane to Italy. However, this lead proved to be false, and the painting’s location is still unknown.