Thieves take sketchbook of Picasso’s art

PARIS (AP) — A red notebook of 33 pencil drawings by Pablo Picasso has been stolen from a specially locked glass case in the Paris museum that bears the painter’s name, authorities said Tuesday.

The book is believed to be worth $11 million, a police official said.

The theft took place between Monday and Tuesday morning at the Picasso Museum, and the notebook was removed from a glass case that “can only be opened with a specific instrument,” the Culture Ministry said.

A museum employee discovered the notebook missing Tuesday morning from the second-floor display case, the police official said anonymously, as police are not authorized to discuss cases publicly.

The museum is closed Tuesdays.

There was no surveillance system in the room where the notebook was displayed, the police official said.

The stolen sketchbook, shiny red with the word “Album” inscribed in gold on the front, dated from 1917 to 1924, the Culture Ministry statement said.

It measured 6.3 inches by 9.5 inches.

The Picasso Museum, in Paris’ old Marais neighborhood, is dedicated to the Spanish-born painter, a founder of the Cubist movement and leading 20th-century artist.

The market for stolen art is valued in the billions of dollars annually.