The Boston Public Library is looking for two valuable Old Master artworks missing from its extensive print collection.
The Boston Herald reported Tuesday library president Amy Ryan says it’s hoped the 1634 Rembrandt etching and the 1504 Albrecht Durer engraving simply have been misfiled.
A police report says the library reported the pieces missing April 29.
However, library staff discovered the art work missing 21 days earlier, April 8.
Police value the 8-by-11-inch Durer, “Adam and Eve,” at about $600,000. The 5-by-6-inch Rembrandt self-portrait is valued between $20,000 and $30,000.
Ryan says the library is conducting a detailed search of its collection, reviewing security procedures and working with police to determine if criminal activity was involved.
The library has about 30 prints by Rembrandt and 105 by Durer.
UPDATED, 7 a.m.
Police and the FBI are investigating the disappearance of two pieces of artwork worth more than half a million dollars from the Boston Public Library, and a top employee has been placed on leave.
It’s still not clear whether the works by Rembrandt and Albrecht Durer were stolen or were simply misplaced.
Police Commissioner William Evans says investigators are looking into whether the disappearance of the pieces was “an inside job” and are looking at several library employees. He did not disclose names.
A library spokeswoman says the keeper of special collections is on leave.
The missing pieces are a 1634 Rembrandt etching and the 1504 Durer engraving.
The 8-by-11-inch Durer, “Adam and Eve,” is valued at about $600,000. The 5-by-6-inch Rembrandt self-portrait is valued between $20,000 and $30,000.
