Arts News

Dali statuette stolen in Bruges

Aug 20, 2010, 10:54 GMT

Brussels - A statuette by Spanish artist Salvator Dali was stolen in broad daylight from an exhibition in the Belgian city of Bruges, local media said Friday, quoting police sources.

The bronze artefact, known as 'La Femme aux tiroirs' (Lady with drawers), was snatched shortly after noon local time on Wednesday, the Belga news agency reported.

The figurine, which measures around 50 centimetres in height and 30 centimetres in width and weighs around 10 kilograms, was hidden in a bag before being smuggled out of the exhibition, hosted in Bruges' medieval bell tower.

The location is one of Belgium's most popular tourist destination, and was featured in the 2008 film noir 'In Bruges.'

Police are currently examining CCTV camera footage in the hope of identifying the criminals. Belga reported the statuette as being worth around 100,000 euros (125,500 dollars). But the exhibition's curator, Stefaan Delbaere, did not confirm the estimate.