In September 2019, an art piece named “America” was installed at Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire, England, as part of Maurizio Cattelan’s exhibition “Victory is Not an Option.” Blenheim Palace, a stately home and a UNESCO World Heritage site was the birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill. What made this piece of art unique was the fact it was a physical and functional toilet made of solid yellow gold. The highly polished and gleaming loo is an example of satirical participatory art, where visitors were invited to actually use the toilet. Beyond its worth in gold, America carried significant artistic value as a tongue-in-cheek commentary on excessive wealth and inequality. The piece gained notoriety when the Guggenheim Museum’s curator famously offered to loan it to the White House in 2017, a satirical gesture highlighting its cultural symbolism.
On September 14, 2019, thieves broke into the palace around 4:50 AM. They rammed through the mansion’s door and broke into the restroom where America was installed. Armed with sledgehammers, the burglars quickly detached the toilet, which was bolted and plumbed into the floor. The thieves then loaded the toilet into a waiting vehicle. The entire heist took only about five minutes from break-in to getaway. The theft required “inside knowledge,” according to Thames Valley Police, who noted the complexity of removing a heavy, wired-in object.
America is made from 18ct yellow gold and weighs 98 kg. Since 18ct gold is 75% pure, the toilet contains 73.5 kg of pure gold (0.75 × 98 kg = 73.5 kg). We can find the spot price value the 18ct Gold toilet using the gold spot price today per gram and multiply by the pure gold weight.
98kg of 18ct Gold
If the thieves have melted the toilet and sold for scrap price they may have received between 90-95% of the spot value above.
We have calculated the toilets current spot and scrap value but the art piece held value above its weight in gold.
Four men were charged in connection with the theft in 2021, including James “Jimmy” Sheen, a 40-year-old with ties to organized crime. A 2019 arrest of a man using the alias “Mr. Jones” (later identified as Michael Jones) yielded little progress. Trials dragged into 2023, but the toilet remains missing. Detective Inspector Jess Milne called it “one of the most unusual” cases of her career.
The Duke of Marlborough lamented the ordeal as “a very, very trying week,” while Blenheim Palace faced criticism for underestimating security risks. The theft underscored the challenges of protecting provocative art—and the absurdity of stealing a symbol meant to mock greed.
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