More than 200 golden Mozart statues have vanished from Salzburg in the space of a month — one in a pattern of mass-thefts of collectible multiples from public spaces,, forcing organizers to shut down the outdoor portion of a public art tribute marking the composer’s 270th birthday.
German conceptual artist Ottmar Hörl installed 320 polymer figures, each about 50 centimeters tall and painted gold, across the city on July 15, according to the Associated Press. Most stood in Mirabell Gardens, a popular tourist spot next to where Mozart once lived. Others appeared at the composer’s former residence, the Magic Flute Pavilion and grounds linked to the Mozarteum Foundation. The figures show Mozart walking with his dog Pimperl, a detail Hörl chose to present the composer as an ordinary person rather than a distant genius.
Within two weeks more than 80 figures were gone. By Aug. 12 the total reached 210. The Mozarteum Foundation closed the Mirabell Gardens section early — a recurring pattern of high-volume replica and collector-item thefts that have hit other public installations. Roughly 110 statues remain on view at the other sites through Aug. 30.
Hörl, born in 1950 in Nauheim and long known for large-scale serial public sculptures, called the disappearances organized theft. The garden locks at 6 p.m. The statues were secured with steel fixtures. Daytime removal would have drawn attention in a busy public park.
“The worst thing for an artist is when his work dissolves,”
he told the German news agency dpa.
“I find it a bit cheeky.”
He had planned to sell the figures after the exhibition for about 90 to 100 euros each — part of a broader market for limited-run artist multiples. The loss sits near 20,000 euros. Organizers held some spares, but not enough to fill the gaps. The manufacturer is on summer holiday, so replacements cannot be made quickly — Deutsche Welle’s coverage noted the same supply gap.
Linus Klumpner, managing director of the Internationale Stiftung Mozarteum, had already noted the steady losses in late July. “Sometimes one Mozart is missing in the morning, sometimes two or three,” he said at the time. He appealed for people to leave the remaining figures in place so later visitors could still see the installation.
Hörl has faced similar thefts before — a Bayreuth installation of his Wagner figures was similarly picked clean within days, per Smithsonian Magazine or more systematic removal. He treats the risk as part of working in open space. The Mozart project formed one piece of Salzburg’s year-long observance of the composer’s birth on Jan. 27, 1756. Concerts, exhibitions and the Mozart Week festival have marked the anniversary across the city.
No arrests have been reported. Police have not publicly identified suspects or released further details — a gap that ultimately can yield results, as in the recent Home Depot theft-ring bust on how the figures left the locked garden. The remaining statues continue on display in a thinner arrangement until the end of the month.
