Ease of famed artwork robbery was enough to make you Scream

ART lovers sighed with relief, rather than screamed, on August 31, 2006.

It was the day that Norwegian police announced they had recovered the stolen Edvard Munch painting, The Scream.

The famous work had been stolen in broad daylight from Oslo’s Munch Museum two years earlier.

A witness had photographed the thieves as they did it, but this still didn’t help the police track it down very quickly.

Previously, in 1994, the city’s National Museum had its version of The Scream pinched, too. Those thieves had left a note saying: “Thanks for the poor security.”

Although police had arrested a suspect in 2005, they couldn’t locate the painting.

At the same time, they were still looking for another stolen Munch, Madonna.

The museum was given a drastic overhaul after being closed for months, and when the paintings were found, they were in great condition, but police wouldn’t say how they had finally come to locate them again.

There are four versions of The Scream, paintings and pastels, done between 1893 and 1910.