(Credits: Guy Hepner / Andy Warhol)
A town hall in the Netherlands has admitted to discarding a classic Andy Warhol print, which is believed to have been thrown away with rubbish during a renovation.
The lost Warhol print is of Queen Beatrix, a former Dutch queen. It is among 46 pieces of artwork that went missing in the Maashorst municipality during renovation work in 2024. The 1980s silkscreen print is believed to have a value of €15,000.
Following an investigation, it has been concluded that the 46 missing artworks were stored in the basement during the renovation process. Due to a lack of clear guidelines, they were presumed to be rubbish and thrown away as a result.
Hans Van der Pas, the mayor of Maashorst, said to Omroep Brabant: “That’s not how you treat valuables. But it did happen. We regret that. It’s most likely that the artworks were accidentally taken away with the rubbish.”
“Somewhere in that period the art must have ended up in the bulk waste,” Van der Pas added, about water damage which occurred in September 2023.
Van der Pas continued: “The board regrets this very much, especially considering the meaning or value of the artworks for the artist and the community. With the knowledge we have now, we should and would have made different choices at that time.”
Meanwhile, in a separate statement, the Maashorst municipality confirmed the items were placed into storage when work was ongoing at the town hall in Uden, but acknowledged, “It’s most likely that the artworks were accidentally taken away with the trash.”
Local authorities are not expecting the 46 artworks, which have a combined value of €22,000, to be returned.
Warhol’s Queen Beatrice print, made in 1985, two years before his death, was part of his Reigning Queens series, which also celebrated Queen Elizabeth II, Margrethe II of Denmark, and Queen Ntombi Twala of Eswatini.
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