Laszlo Toth
Laszlo Toth (Hungarian: Tóth László; born 1 July 1938) is a Hungarian-born Australian geologist. He achieved worldwide notoriety when he vandalised Michelangelo's Pietà statue on 21 May, 1972. He was not charged with a criminal offence after the incident, but was hospitalized in Italy for two years. On his release, he was immediately deported to Australia.
Laszlo Toth | |
|---|---|
.png.webp) Laszlo Toth in 1972 | |
| Born | 1 July 1938[1][2] |
| Known for | Vandalising Michelangelo's Pietà statue |
Early life
Toth was born in Pilisvörösvár, Hungary to a Roman Catholic family. After graduating with a degree in geology, he moved to Australia in 1965. As his English was poor and his geology diploma was not recognized, he initially worked at a soap factory. In June 1971, he moved to Rome, Italy, knowing no Italian, intending to become recognized as Christ. He sent letters to Pope Paul VI and unsuccessfully attempted to meet him.[1]
Vandalism of Pietà
On 21 May, 1972, at 33 years of age (Jesus's traditional age at death) on the Feast of Pentecost, Toth, wielding a geologist's hammer and shouting, "I am Jesus Christ—risen from the dead",[1][3][4] attacked Michelangelo's Pietà statue in St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican City. With fifteen blows, he removed Mary's arm at the elbow, knocked off a chunk of her nose, and chipped one of her eyelids.[4] He was subdued by bystanders, including American sculptor Bob Cassilly, who struck Toth several times before pulling him away from the Pietà.[5] Following his arrest, Toth repeated his claim that he was Christ and said that God had compelled him to destroy the statue because Christ, being eternal, could not have a mother.[6] In view of his apparent mental instability, Toth was never charged with the crime. On 29 January, 1973, he was committed to an Italian psychiatric hospital. He was released on 9 February, 1975 and immediately deported back to Australia where authorities did not detain him.
Literature and popular culture
- Toth is the eponymous inspiration for books of letters by Don Novello.[7]
- Comic book artist Steve Ditko used Toth's actions as the central metaphor in his 1992 examination of issues concerning creation and destruction, Lazlo's Hammer (corrected to "Laszlo's Hammer" in subsequent reprints and revisions).[8]
- Toth is referenced in "Dough, Ray and Me", the eighth episode of the thirteenth season of the animated television series Archer,[9] in which secret agent Sterling Archer asks fellow spy Lana Kane if she is about to ruin his masterpiece plan.
References
- Gamboni, Dario (1997). The destruction of art: iconoclasm and vandalism since the French Revolution. Reaktion Books. pp. 202–203. ISBN 978-0-948462-94-8.
- A martellate un pazzo in S. Pietro sfregia la Pietà di Michelangelo, La Stampa, 22 May 1972, p. 1.
- "Notes and Queries: Whatever happened to Laszlo Toth, the man who smashed Michelangelo's Pieta in 1972?". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 8 June 2006.
- "Chapel of the Pieta by Michelangelo Buonarroti, 1499". saintpetersbasilica.org. 23 September 2008. Retrieved 5 December 2009.
- Schlafly, Tom (29 September 2011). "Remembering Bob Cassilly". St. Louis Public Radio. Archived from the original on 6 November 2011. Retrieved 23 October 2011.
- Gamboni, Dario (1997). The Destruction of Art: Iconoclasm and Vandalism Since the French Revolution. Reaktion Books. p. 202. ISBN 978-0-948462-94-8.
- "The Laszlo Letters (Don Novello interviewed by Bob Garfield)". On the Media. WNYC Radio. 2003. Retrieved 8 June 2006.
- Lazlo's Hammer. Ditko-fever.com. Retrieved on 17 April 2014.
- Hughes, William (12 October 2022). "A fun, fast-moving Archer finale promises the show's latest fresh start—since the last one". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 20 December 2022.