Let’s travel back to 2019 when some bold friends decided to pull off a crazy move. They grabbed Maurizio Cattelan’s golden toilet, called “America,” from a fancy bathroom at Blenheim Palace. You know, where Winston Churchill, the ex-UK prime minister, hung out. This 200-pound golden chair was worth a whopping $6 million. But here’s the twist—the seven friends left the place with a lot of water damage. One guy got caught, but no one got in trouble.
Charges Are Here
Now, jump to today, and the Crown Prosecution Service says four friends are officially in trouble. What are they accused of? Breaking in, moving stuff that’s not theirs, and making secret plans to move things around.
Is the Chair Coming Back?
While the friends might get in trouble, there’s a small chance the golden chair will come back. Matthew Barber, a police and crime commissioner, said in 2021, “Getting back the chair would be hard… If you have that much gold, it seems likely someone already got rid of it. It would be awesome if we can get it back, but I don’t think it’s the same as before.”
From Guggenheim to Blenheim
This golden chair had quite a trip, starting at the Guggenheim in 2016. People could use the fancy chair in one of the museum’s bathrooms. Fast forward to September 2019, and it shows up at Blenheim Palace for a special show of Cattelan’s art.
Cattelan’s Thoughts on the Heist
When Cattelan heard about the whole chair adventure, he had a good laugh, saying, “Who’s silly enough to take a chair?” The funny part? He kind of forgot he made a golden one.
In the end, it’s a crazy story of friends taking a golden chair, leaving a cool palace wet, and now, four friends might have to say sorry for taking a chair that’s probably having a fun time far from where it started.