Canadian and Italian dignitaries marked the successful recovery of an original print of a famous photograph of Winston Churchill known as The Roaring Lion on Sept. 19. The photo had gone missing from an Ottawa hotel, starting a two-year search.
Taken by Armenian-Canadian photographer Yousuf Karsh in 1941 after the British wartime prime minister gave a speech to the Canadian Parliament during World War II, the photo is one of the most famous portraits in the world. It is also the image on the U.K.’s ￡5 banknote. The photograph shows Churchill with a belligerent expression, presumably due to Karsh taking a cigar out of Churchill’s mouth just moments before. In 1998, Karsh and his wife gifted an original signed print to the Fairmont Chateau Laurier hotel in Ottowa, Canada.
According to Canadian police, the portrait was likely stolen between Dec. 25, 2021, and Jan. 6, 2022, and replaced with a fake amid strict COVID lockdowns. A staff member at the hotel was the first to discover the swap months later, on Aug. 19, 2022, upon noticing the frame hung improperly and differed from the others.
Ottawa police successfully tracked the stolen photo to a private collection in Italy. The police say the private buyer and the London auction house involved in the sale were unaware of the true story behind the piece. Fortunately, the buyer quickly agreed to return the iconic Churchill photograph to the hotel once he learned of the theft. He attended the ceremony at the Canadian Embassy in Rome, where the Italian carabinieri police handed the photo portrait to the Canadian ambassador to Italy, Elissa Goldberg.
Hannah Kim For The Teen Times teen/1728003899/1613367659
1. What event led to the search for the original print of “The Roaring Lion” photograph of Winston Churchill?
2. How did Canadian police determine the time frame during which the photograph was likely stolen?
3. Where was the stolen photograph found, and who facilitated its return to Canada?
4. What steps were taken by the buyer of the photograph once they learned about its theft?
1. Why do you think the recovery of historical artifacts like Churchill’s photograph is significant for national and cultural heritage?
2. How does the involvement of international law enforcement in recovering stolen art affect global cooperation?
3. What role do private collectors play in preserving historical pieces, and how can they ensure the legality of their collections?
4. How does the public's interest in historical photographs and artifacts influence their value in both cultural and financial terms?
Canadian and Italian dignitaries marked the successful recovery of an original print of a famous photograph of Winston Churchill known as The Roaring Lion on Sept. 19. The photo had gone missing from an Ottawa hotel, starting a two-year search.
