Eugene Delacroix's "Liberty Leading the People" is one of the most revered paintings in art history. But the painting may never be the same after a mentally unstable woman defaced it with graffiti on Thursday.
According to BBC, the woman drew graffiti on the painting while it was being shown at Louvre branch museum in Lens. She took a black marker and wrote "AE911" across the bottom of the iconic painting; BBC states that it could be a reference to a 9/11 conspiracy. According to the Associated Press, the 28-year old woman is currently being held in custody by police and is said to suffer from psychiatric problems.
The famous painting commemorates the July Revolution of 1830 which led to the fall of Charles X. It is also thought that the work may have inspired the Statue of Liberty found in New York City.
Despite the woman's attempts to damage Delacroix's work, the Louvre states that the damage is not irreparable and that the painting will be examined by a restoration expert. "It seems that the mark will be fairly easily removed," the director of the Louvre-Lens branch, Xavier Dectot said.
The Lens branch was opened in December and was slated to showcase the "Liberté" painting for a year. However, the museum was closed on Friday and it is possible that the painting will be taken out of the museum.
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