The Princess, the Madonna, and a Wild Water Fight
One visitor, two centuries-old paintings, several soaked conservators
Image: Wikimedia Commons (public domain)
- Repair Cost
- Undisclosed
- Curator's Blood Pressure
- 96%
- Embarrassment Level
- 7/10
- Recovered?
- Stabilized
- Selfie Involved?
- No
A 19-year-old man allegedly hurled water at two centuries-old paintings — Ingres' 'The Princesse de Broglie' and Girolamo dai Libri's 'Madonna and Child with Saints' — and tore tapestries from the walls during a bizarre outburst at the Met.
Visitors expected a quiet November afternoon in 2025. Instead they watched a young man throw water at two masterpieces and rip historic tapestries from the gallery walls in what authorities later described as a bizarre episode. Among the targets were Ingres' luminous 1853 portrait and a Renaissance altarpiece from around 1520.
Museum staff responded quickly and both paintings were stabilised without catastrophic loss; police arrested the suspect at the scene. The incident was a reminder of how fast a routine visit can become a conservation emergency. Sometimes security prepares for professional thieves. Sometimes it prepares for someone having a very bad day.