Audacious art heists that shocked the world: How Nottingham silver raid follows ... trends now

Throughout history brazen thieves have attempted to carry out audacious heists that have shocked the world.

Some have walked away with huge fortunes, while others have been caught out by high-level security in place to protect priceless pieces of art and precious artefacts from being stripped out of museums.

Some of the most daring heists include the Mona Lisa being stolen by a worker who simply lifted it off the wall, thieves of an Edvard Munch leaving a note which read: 'Thank you for the poor security', and a sledgehammer-wielding robber smashing his way to a Vincent Van Gogh painting.

Just in August, British museum curator Peter John Higgs was fired after being accused of stealing priceless treasures from the British Museum. It was reported at the time that there were up to 2,000 items missing which were worth 'millions'.

Higgs, who was described as one of Britain's top experts on Greek and Mediterranean ancient artefacts, was said to be furious after being sacked, with his son claiming he was innocent. He was not arrested.

Even more recently, a manhunt was launched today to track down a gang who stole historical silver antiques in a 'planned and targeted attack' on a military museum in Nottinghamshire.

The bold heist, which involved cutting a hole in the floor, was carried out at the Royal Lancers & Nottinghamshire Yeomanry Museum at Thoresby Park in Newark in the early hours of Sunday morning. 

Among the treasures stolen was a parcel and gilt rosewater dish - said to be the sister piece to the famous Wimbledon women's singles trophy.

The attack, reminiscent of a Hollywood heist movie, was only uncovered when the case containing the precious treasures was moved. 

It then became clear that robbers had drilled up through an archway in the building and burrowed through several layers of wood to gain access to the silver cabinet.

Other pieces stolen from the museum include the Hurlingham Grand Military Polo trophy, statuettes of mounted soldiers and a cavalry trumpet. 

Going back to 1911, Vincenzo Peruggia, who worked in the world-famous Louvre museum in Paris walked up to the Mona Lisa, took it off the wall, extracted it from its case, and took it home. 

Some 112 years later, despite its simplicity it is still one of the most recognised art heists in history. 

Peruggia kept the painting hidden in a trunk for two years before he was caught trying to flog it to a gallery in Florence. He said he wanted to return it to its homeland. 

The Mona Lisa was eventually returned to the Louvre, but in the meantime police had accused a number of people of theft, including Pablo Picasso.

Fifty years later, on the same date as the Mona Lisa theft, Francisco Goya’s portrait of The Duke of Wellington was stolen from London's National Gallery by Kempton Bunton.

The Duke which was released in 2020 starring Jim Broadbent and Helen Mirren depicts the heist which saw Kempton steal the painting to raise £140,000 for a cause close to his heart - ensuring elderly and poor people could get free TV licences.

Four years after Bunton climbed through a bathroom window - which he had previously left ajar - he turned up at a police station and confessed to the theft. 

Bunton's lawyer Jeremy Hutchinson QC, managed to persuade the jury that his client had borrowed the painting and he was only convicted of

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