At the Northern Bank in Belfast masked men stole £26M, the largest cash robbery in UK history.

This #Heist (though the violent kidnapping blurs this term) exposed a society still marked by conflict and fragile trust.

Maybe it exposes the fault lines of #reconciliation?

#HI6171 📷: Amazon

'Paintings were suddenly seen as money': The reason art heists exploded in the 1970s Acclaimed new film The Mastermind, starring Josh O'Connor, tells the story of an art heist gone wrong. It's inspired by a wave of similar thefts at a time when society was in upheaval.

#GardnerMuseum: two fake police, 13 stolen masterpieces, and 0 arrests.

Maybe this #Heist shows the moment in time when #massmedia and #PublicBroadcasting broadened the publics understanding of the value of #Art and #CulturalHerietage? #PublicHistory #Democratizing #Culture?

#HI6171

Canada's Supreme Court upholds C$9m fine on maple syrup thief Nearly 3,000 tonnes of maple syrup was stolen in the so-called Great Canadian Maple Syrup Heist.

The #MapleSyrupHeist shows how positive #stereotypes can fortify #NationalIdentity.

Canada’s “most valuable” #Heist was non-violent, with no guns, and the perpetrators were held accountable.

#LiquidGold for a country that often defines itself in contrast to its neighbour.

#HI6171 #PublicHistory

Thank you for following this nascent #PublicHistorian as I learned to use #Bluesky for what I love doing: telling a good story.

The #HeistHistories we continue to share shape our understanding of ourselves and our relationship with institutions of power.

📷: @claireul2025.bsky.social
#HI6171

Canada's Supreme Court upholds C$9m fine on maple syrup thief Nearly 3,000 tonnes of maple syrup was stolen in the so-called Great Canadian Maple Syrup Heist.

The #MapleSyrupHeist shows how positive #stereotypes can fortify #NationalIdentity.

Canada’s “most valuable” #Heist was non-violent, with no guns, and the perpetrators were held accountable.

#LiquidGold for a country that often defines itself in contrast to its neighbour.

#HI6171 #PublicHistory

'Paintings were suddenly seen as money': The reason art heists exploded in the 1970s Acclaimed new film The Mastermind, starring Josh O'Connor, tells the story of an art heist gone wrong. It's inspired by a wave of similar thefts at a time when society was in upheaval.

#GardnerMuseum: two fake police, 13 stolen masterpieces, and 0 arrests.

Maybe this #Heist shows the moment in time when #massmedia and #PublicBroadcasting broadened the publics understanding of the value of #Art and #CulturalHerietage? #PublicHistory #Democratizing #Culture?

#HI6171

Film poster with 4 characters

At the Northern Bank in Belfast masked men stole £26M, the largest cash robbery in UK history.

This #Heist (though the violent kidnapping blurs this term) exposed a society still marked by conflict and fragile trust.

Maybe it exposes the fault lines of #reconciliation?

#HI6171 📷: Amazon

a pink panther is standing in front of a fence and saying `` 2:22 i love you '' . ALT: a pink panther is standing in front of a fence and saying `` 2:22 i love you '' .

In non-violent heists, I often root for the thief.

Is my #Heist fascination about the crime or the fantasy of reclaiming power from institutions?

Is the public appeal questioning who owns heritage, who tells history, and who keeps it?

Maybe a #decolonizing conversation for the masses?

#HI6171

Small Mona Lisa in large room

In 1911, the #MonaLisa vanished from the #Louvre.

The thief? Vincenzo Peruggia, an Italian nationalist who believed she should return home.

For two years the world searched, never imagining she was hidden in his small apartment.

#Heritage, #identity, and #art intertwined.

#HI6171
📷: Louvre

a man in a police uniform and tie says it 's heist day jake ALT: a man in a police uniform and tie says it 's heist day jake

Why do we root for the thief? Maybe because every #Heist flips the script. Its about individuals outsmarting the powerful.

We cheer rebellion against systems that feel untouchable.

It’s not the crime we admire, but the courage to challenge control.

#PublicHistory #Heritage #HI6171

Colorful words that pertain to National identity. A word map.

From the #Louvre to #Belfast to #Belfast to #RuralCanada, every #Heist becomes more than a crime, it becomes a story, a symbol, and a shared memory.

We study them not just for what was stolen, but for what they reveal about us. 📷: Cultural Heritage Informatics Initiative

#HI6171

What we choose to remember, and what we laugh about, says a lot about who we are as #Nations.

So do our commitments to justice.

Canada, a country that prides itself on law and order, arrested 17 people and justice was served to them sweet and slow... with maple syrup on the side.

#HI6171

The fact that the #MapleSyrupHeist is Canada’s largest to date #Heist, a non-violent and glacial theft, made for great fodder for late night hosts... Canadians became the punch line but they liked it.

Being told that even our crimes are polite reinforced #NationalIdeinty and #Values.

#HI6171

Apparently, over several months, nearly 10,000 barrels, worth in excess of $18 million were siphoned from the #CanadaianCartel...

Thank goodness it was only maple syrup! 🍁

When the news broke, late-night hosts couldn’t resist.

The world laughed, but for Canadians, it hit close to home. #HI6171

a man is pushing a red drum in a warehouse . ALT: a man is pushing a red drum in a warehouse .

In July 2012, Michel, a worker in a #CanadianCartel, arrives at a rural warehouse to check inventory.

For years his cartel had been building a secret reserve, a stockpile of "sweet stuff," allowing them to control the price of what they're pushing.

To Michel all looks fine... until👇

#HI6171

empty frames in fancy museum room

Keeping a candle burning for what was lost, the #IsabellaStewartGardnerMuseum still hangs the empty frames where the stolen paintings once were.

Silent reminders, waiting for their art to come home.
📷: Gardner Museum
#HI6171

The men weren’t police officers. Within moments, they overpower the guards, binding them with duct tape and locking them in the basement.

The #Heist-ers move toward the Dutch Room… they know exactly what they’re after. The Rembrandt paintings 🎨🧑‍🎨

TBC👇 #HI6171 #HeistHistories

Louvre heist raises decades-old questions about museum security The heist at the Louvre on Sunday morning, which saw thieves flee with eight royal jewels, has raised questions about how well France's priceless historical artefacts and cultural heritage are being…

Louvre heist raises decades-old questions about museum security f24.my/BVbV.BS

Anyone working in #GLAMs knows that shrinking budgets make it harder to truly serve our publics. How can we protect invaluable cultural heritage in an era of austerity and constant cuts to culture funding? #HI6171

an aerial view of a bank with a dollar sign on the top ALT: an aerial view of a bank with a dollar sign on the top

Northern Ireland, 2004. Just six sleeps until Christmas. Late in the evening, two separate households hear knocks at their doors, but it’s not carolers who await. It’s armed men, arriving to take the families of bank employees hostage.

So begins the intense story of the #NorthernBankHeist.
#HI6171

huge crowds taking photos of Mona Lisa

Every good #HeistHistory has an ending. For Mona, it came in 1913 when Vincenzo tried to sell her to a Florentine art expert. He was denounced and convicted in Italy, citing national pride. He got a slap on the wrist, but now Mona is sentenced to 30,000 visitors a day. #HI6171 📷: NYT

Movie Poster

Vincenzo hid Mona in his tiny Paris apartment for 2 years. Though questioned, he was never a main suspect. As the investigation stalled, media coverage exploded. Mona-themed films rolled out, headlines multiplied, and just like that, she became a pop culture icon. 👇 #HI6171 #HeistHistories 📷: IMBD

Empty louvre walls

We can imagine the #nationalistic whisper campaign waging war in his mind: “I’m not stealing, I’m liberating her for Italy.”
Aug 21, 1911, Perugguia strolled into work in his usual white lab coat, removed Mona from her wall& frame, hid her under his coat and waltzed out. #HI6171 👇📷:Wikipedia

Mug shot of man with mustache

In 1911, #VincenzoPeruggia was a newly arrived Italian handyman working at the Louvre. He'd have you believe that between enjoying Mona's smile, polishing glass and building frames he'd been told that Napoleon had stolen the #MonaLisa from Italy whilst on campaign.👇 #HI6171 #FakeNews 📷: Le Parisien

Mona Lisa with a clothes pin on her nose

Eventually rescued from the royal flush and rehung in the post-revolutionary Louvre, Mona was acknowledged as a treasure by Intellectuals, but oft ignored by visitors searching for more dynamic paintings. She grew lonely, until, that is, she locked eyes with Vincenzo. TBC👇 #HI6171 📷: Amazon

Sketch of old bearded man, presumed to be a self portrait by Leonard DaVinci

At the invitation of King Francis I, DaVinci (then 64) packed up his worldly belonging, including 3 paintings & his notebooks and retired to France. After Davinci’s death Francis I acquired the paintings and Mona was hung in the royal privy of Fontainebleau. TBC👇 #HeistHistories #HI6171 📷:Britannica

Black and white mug shot of a man with a moustache

Eventually rescued from the royal flush and rehung in the post-revolutionary Louvre, Mona was acknowledged as a treasure by Intellectuals, but oft ignored by visitors searching for more dynamic paintings. She grew lonely, until she locked eyes with Vincenzo. #hesithistories #HI6171 📷: Le Parisien

pencil drawing of what is assumed is a self portrait of Leonardo Davinci 📷: Britannica

At the invitation of King Francis I, DaVinci (then 64) packed up his worldly belonging, including 3 paintings & his notebooks and retired in France. After Davinci’s death Francis acquired the paintings and Mona was hung in the royal privy of Fontainebleau. TBC👇
#hesithistories #HI6171 📷: Britannica

Tiara of Eugénie, Photo credit: Louvre

Hi, I'm @claireul2025.bsky.social, a Paris-based tour guide and part-time UL Public History MA student.

Yesterday we got TIARA-BLE news from the #Louvre.

Inspired by the headlines, let’s look at the greatest #HeistHistories during my week-long student takeover #HI6171 📸: Louvre

There are three carved pumpkins, one cat pumpkin, one unicorn pumpkin and one scary-looking pumpkin. It is dark, and the pumpkins are lit up

With this last post for the “History of Halloween” week, I wish everyone a spooky and scary Halloween and for those celebrating Samhain a considerate harvest and start of winter. #HI6171 #PublicHistory #Halloween #Samhain #Pumpkins 📸: heidihistory.bsky.social

Multiple pumpkins laying on top of each other. It says Johnstown Castle, Estate, Museum and Gardens. There are Halloween events from October 18th until November 2nd. From the 18th there is a pumpkin pick up as well as indoor and outdoor trails. From the 30th until the 31st there is a night at the museum and on the 31st there are Halloween movies.

Johnstown Castle is hosting various Halloween Events starting tomorrow with “Museum of Mysteries”. Check out their Instagram for more information: @johnstowncastle 📸: johnstowncastle #HI6171 #JohnstownCastle #Halloween #MuseumOfMysteries