Posted on 04/25/2025 4:05:09 PM PDT by nickcarraway
A Dutch municipality has admitted it likely threw away dozens of artworks by mistake, including a rare Andy Warhol print of Queen Beatrix, during town hall renovations last year.
The incident occurred in Uden, which merged with Landerd in 2022 to form the new Maashorst municipality. Local officials said 46 artworks were placed in storage during the building work, but were probably discarded with construction waste.
In a statement released Thursday, the municipality said, “It’s most likely that the artworks were accidentally taken away with the trash.” One of the missing items, a Warhol silkscreen from the 1980s, was estimated to be worth €15,000 (USD 17,069). The total loss is valued at around €22,000 (USD 25,035).
Investigation reveals mismanagement and lack of procedures
An internal investigation found that the missing artworks had been stored in basement wheelie bins and were “not handled with care,” according to a Dutch newspaper. Investigators said officials failed to establish ownership of the items and had no clear policies for cataloguing or safeguarding them.
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The report noted that no procedures were in place for tracking, storing, or preserving the artworks. When the pieces were discovered missing, the municipality took limited action. The investigation concluded that poor planning, weak oversight, and a lack of accountability led to the loss.
Mayor Hans van der Pas acknowledged the mistake in an interview with public broadcaster Omroep Brabant. “That’s not how you treat valuables,” he said. “But it happened. We regret that.”
The lost print was part of Warhol’s Reigning Queens series, created in 1985, two years before the artist’s death. The series includes portraits of four royal figures: Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, Queen Ntombi Twala of Eswatini, and Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands.
Queen Beatrix served as the Dutch monarch from 1980 until 2013, when she stepped down in favor of her son, King Willem-Alexander.
Second incident involving Beatrix print raises concerns This isn’t the first time a Warhol print of Queen Beatrix has made headlines in the Netherlands. In November 2023, thieves stole four Warhol silkscreens from the MPV Gallery in North Brabant.
Two prints – those of Queen Beatrix and Queen Ntombi – were later abandoned because they didn’t fit in the thieves’ car, according to public broadcaster NOS.
With one Warhol print discarded and another narrowly spared in a failed heist, concern is growing over how high-value artworks are handled by public institutions. The Maashorst municipality has pledged to review its storage and cataloguing processes to prevent similar losses in the future.
They were trashed. Suuuuuuure. Someone stole them.
The king has no clothes.
“The king has no clothes.”
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Because the municipal workers discarded them with the construction waste.
And stupid people like this in govt work think they should run our lives.
In the film ‘Contraband’, the Mark Wahlberg character removes a large Jackson Pollock painting from the frame. He throws the canvas in the back of beat up van along with some old paint cans and brushes in order to smuggle it into the U.S. Customs officers take a quick look at the canvas and give the ok for the van to pass through.
“Being half Dutch, I’ve always thought his work was $hit too.”
I think in the Netherlands they consider him an artist, although that will change with their transition to Islam 20 years from now.
The muzzies will go into all the museums and destroy all the paintings of the Dutch Masters. Speaking of Dutch Masters, I remember their advertisements on the Ernie Kovacs TV show.
Oops.
....probably discarded with construction waste.
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Seems fitting.
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