Stolen Michelangelo papers offered back to Vatican, for $100,000 ransom
March 09, 2015
The Vatican has confirmed that historic papers written by Michelangelo, which were stolen from St. Peter’s basilica years ago, have been offered back to the Holy See, in exchange for a sum of over $100,000.
The Italian daily Il Messaggero originally broke the story that the documents, related to Michelangelo’s work on the construction of the Vatican basilica, had been taken from the archives long ago. The theft was discovered in 1997, the Vatican disclosed, but the loss had never been revealed to the public.
Il Messaggero reported that a former Vatican employee contacted Cardinal Angelo Comastri, the archpriest of St. Peter’s basilica, offering to restore the Michelangelo papers. “Naturally, as we are talking about stolen documents, the cardinal refused,” said Father Federico Lombardi, the director of the Vatican press office.
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