Stolen Stradivarius returned 35 years after theft

It began with a Bach violin sonata played by one of his prosecutors. And then one day, he turned around and it was gone. The ex-wife of Phillip Johnson, the man who grabbed the violin from Mr. Totenberg’s office at the Longy School of Music in Cambridge, Mass., discovered the instrument while cleaning house in California, Ms. Totenberg reported. To Amy, the Ames Stradivarius “gave gorgeous voice to my father’s artistry” and symbolized his “enduring love” for her mother, who also did not survive to see its return. “As he put it, he had lost his “musical partner of 38 years”. He bought the Stradivarius in 1943 and performed with it exclusively until it was stolen.

“There was nothing to be done, and eventually he just moved on and bought another violin and lived the rest of his life”, she said.

The violin remained with Johnson in a lockbox until his death, Nina said.

“Oh, joy to the world!” enthused Georgia US District Judge Amy Totenberg, who was joined at the ceremony by her sisters Nina Totenberg, a well-known NPR radio correspondent, and foundation director Jill Totenberg.

People of my generation frequently get together to share their memories of where they were when they learned that President John F. Kennedy was shot.

The discovery confirmed what the family had suspected all along: the violin had been stolen by Phillip Johnson, who died a year before Mr Totenberg.

Fast forward another four years.

The violin was made in 1734 by the famed Italian Antonia Stradivari, whose instruments are prized for the quality of their sound, and their rarity, ultimately placing an incomparable value on the violins.

“It was a “Eureka” moment”, Injeian said at a press conference on Thursday. But when the woman sent him a photo, he became confident it was real.

“We’re looking forward to that first concert when the violin is played again”, she said. Ms Totenberg said Johnson was seen around her father’s office at the time of the theft but, lacking evidence, police were not able to obtain a search warrant.

The Stradivarius, which is named after violinist George Ames, its owner in the late 19th century, was returned to Totenberg’s daughters.

It was only recently that she and her boyfriend decided to get the case opened, and upon seeing the instrument, she contacted Injeian, the violin maker said. Johnson’s wife, Thanh Tran, wanted to have an idea of how much the violin would cost, and planned on bringing it to Injeian at the Ace Hotel on West 29th Street. Among other interesting items, Totenberg claims that art theft investigators from the Federal Bureau of Investigation were at the appraiser’s shop within two hours.

“It’s rare in our business that we have the opportunity for one-stop shopping”, McKeogh says, noting that the stolen violin, the person who possessed it and the expert appraiser were all there. “To have it come back, three years after he died, to us, it’s like having him come alive again”.

Crafted in 1743, the Ames Stradivarius was valued at $250,000 when it was stolen.

That was a Friday.

“Stradivarius owners”, she said, “are just guardians of these great instruments”.