Nov 25, 2025 08:00:00

Theft of Picasso's 'Weeping Woman' from the National Museum remains unsolved

One of the paintings in the series known as Pablo Picasso's '

Weeping Woman ' was stolen from the National Gallery of Victoria in Australia in August 1986. The Australian public broadcaster ABC has compiled a summary of the 'Weeping Woman' theft case, which has not been completely solved to this day.

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'Weeping Woman' is part of a series of paintings, most of which are housed in the Tate Modern art museum in the UK. One of the works, an oil painting measuring 55 cm by 46 cm, was purchased by the National Gallery of Victoria in December 1985 for 1.6 million Australian dollars (approximately 160 million yen in today's currency), which was the largest art purchase by an Australian museum at the time.

On August 2, 1986, the year after it was purchased, 'Weeping Woman' was stolen by a thief who broke into the National Gallery of Victoria. Since 'Weeping Woman' was displayed in a frame that required a special screwdriver that was not generally available, it is believed that the thief was knowledgeable about art. It took two days for the theft to be discovered because the thief left a card stating that the painting had been removed for routine maintenance.

Then, on August 10, about a week after the theft, a person calling themselves an 'Australian Cultural Terrorist' sent a letter to Race Matthews, the Minister of Fine Arts at the time. The letter stated that they had stolen the Picasso from the National Gallery to protest against the lack of funding for the arts in this rural state and the clumsy, unimaginative and stupid way in which that funding is managed and distributed. They then made a demand for the return of 'Weeping Woman.'

The Australian cultural terrorists have two demands:

Announce a commitment to increase arts funding by 10% in real terms over the next three years, and appoint an independent commission to examine the arts funding mechanisms available to artists.
- Announcement of the Picasso Ransom Prize, a new annual painting award for artists under the age of 30.

The threat continued, 'If our demands are not met after seven days, the paintings will be destroyed and the campaign to target the paintings for our purposes will continue.'

The Victorian government refused to accept the demands of the Australian cultural terrorists and offered a reward of 50,000 Australian dollars (approximately 5 million yen) for information leading to the arrest of the perpetrators. Matthews, who was specifically criticized by the terrorists, is reported to have said, 'It is inconceivable that anyone with the best interests of art and art lovers at heart would commit such an act.'

On August 19, 1986, nine days after the perpetrators sent their demands, police responded to an anonymous tip and discovered a carefully wrapped copy of 'Weeping Woman' in a locker at Spencer Street Station (now

Southern Cross Station ). The artwork was accompanied by three letters from the Australian Cultural Terrorists, the contents of which were never made public. Only a portion of one of the letters was released, stating, 'We never expected our demands to be met. Our goal has always been to draw public attention to the plight of groups who lack the means to blackmail governments.'

The Weeping Woman was returned undamaged and remains in the collection of the National Gallery of Victoria at the time of writing. However, the individuals or groups calling themselves the Australian Cultural Terrorists have not been arrested, and no other crimes have been confirmed beyond the theft of the Weeping Woman. While none of the perpetrators' demands were met, the ABC states that it 'may be called the most successful art theft in history,' in that it has sparked a national debate about art.