Pre-Columbian Art Stolen From Mingei Museum

Officials at the Mingei International Museum of World Folk Art were tight-lipped Friday about the theft of three pre-Columbian objects from the museum’s current show of mesoamerican art.

The three pieces--a terra-cotta vase and two sculptures--were discovered missing Tuesday, San Diego Police Detective Cory Chesebrough said. Police officials put the value of the three objects at $175,000. Chesebrough said the theft apparently occurred during daylight hours, while the museum was open. The museum is in University Towne Center.

Mingei founder and director Martha Longenecker refused to provide additional details about the theft or the objects, which were on loan to the museum. The only information volunteered by Longenecker was that two of the objects were of Mexican origin and the third was Mayan art.

An employee said museum officials were trying to notify the artifacts’ owners about the theft.

“I wish you weren’t putting together a story,” Longenecker said.

Chesebrough said that police were given “vague descriptions” of the stolen pieces. He said police are looking for “a vase with a painting of man and two jaguar-type sculptures.”

The FBI has joined the investigation, but only to help San Diego police detectives if the investigation reveals that the stolen artifacts were taken out of state, said spokesman Ron Orrantia.

Police said they had no suspects Friday but were following some promising leads. The museum installed a video security system earlier this month, but on it was not known if police had pictures of the thieves.

The theft at the Mingei was the second such incident in San Diego in two months. In August, two pre-Columbian artifacts were stolen from the Museum of Photographic Arts in Balboa Park. A museum employee said officials were unavailable for comment Friday.

Police and FBI spokesmen said they did not know if the two cases are related.

Thefts of pre-Columbian art are becoming increasingly common. The thieves are usually very selective about the objects they target. Stolen artifacts are difficult to trace because they are usually sold to private collectors.

The current show at the Mingei is titled “Pre-Columbian Flora and Fauna: Continuity of Plant and Animal Themes in Mesoamerican Art.” The exhibit shows how pre-Columbian man attempted to explain the natural order of things through the use of animal and plant metaphors.