Thieves Steal Gold Artifact From Peabody

A cast gold pendant was stolen Thursday from the Peabody Museum while the museum was open to the public, Saul L. Chafin, chief of University Police said yesterday.

"The value of the piece could run to $25,000," C.C. Lamberg-Karlovsky, director of the Museum said yesterday. "It is a very major theft of a very well-publicized piece," he added.

The figure is part of the "Masterpieces of the Peabody Museum" exhibit, which opened October 20 and will run through the year. The exhibit features other more valuable pieces, Karlovsky said.

The 8-in. artifact comes from the Cauca Valley, Colombia. The museum acquired the pendant in 1899. The pre-Colombian figure was made circa 400-600 a.d.

Chafin declined to comment on the investigation, saying only "It may have been stolen for resale purposes or it could have been taken for its aesthetic value by someone who really knows art."