Maurizio Cattelan’s Gold Toilet Stolen in Under 5 Minutes
Maurizio Cattelan, the artist behind the duct-taped banana that sold for over $6 million USD last November, remains a headline maker in the global art world.
His latest news centers around the theft of his gold toilet from Blenheim Palace in England, stolen by four male suspects. In just five minutes, the thieves managed to remove the artwork from the palace, and it has yet to be recovered, according to ARTnews.
Titled “America” (2016), the stolen piece is a fully functioning toilet made of 18-karat, 103-kilogram gold, originally placed in the guides’ restroom. While the public couldn’t use it freely, they could book time slots to experience it.
The work first appeared in 2019 at the 18th-century Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire, following a display at the Guggenheim Museum in New York since 2016. The toilet was modeled after a traditional Kohler design, created by a foundry in Florence, Italy.
“The burglary was carefully planned and swiftly executed. The suspects, five in total, entered Blenheim Palace grounds in stolen vehicles—a VW Golf and an Isuzu truck—just before 5 a.m. They spent a mere five minutes inside. This audacious raid was clearly the result of meticulous preparation,” Prosecutor Julian Christopher KC said.
The suspected ringleader of the robbery, Michael Jones, is currently on trial at Oxford Crown Court. It’s reported that he visited the palace twice before orchestrating the heist.
Jones has pleaded not guilty to burglary charges, while his associates—Fred Doe and Bora Guck—face conspiracy charges for transferring criminal property. James Sheen, a construction worker, pleaded guilty to involvement. The toilet was allegedly dismantled and sold for parts to a jeweler in London’s Hatton Garden, according to The Art Newspaper.
In an ironic twist, this isn’t the first time Cattelan’s 18-karat gold toilet has been stolen—another version was taken from Blenheim Palace in 2019.
If I’m adding my own 2 cents I gotta laugh and say good. Wasting tons of money on a golden toilet is retarded and, after selling his other scam piece (duct-taped banana) he can afford it.
