In a crime that’s one part Maltese Falcon and one part School House Rock, Purdue University authorities are looking for a 12-foot pencil reported missing earlier this week.
The sculpture had only been at its new home in Purdue’s Pickett Park for a few months before it was pencil-napped by vandals. Purdue Police say since the pencil was in a somewhat secluded area, there isn’t any video evidence of the heist.
The sculpture had been gone for about five days before a library staffer reported it missing. Authorities say people accustomed to the sight of the giant yellow number-2 probably thought it was being refurbished.
Purdue Police Captain Carol Baunach says thefts of this kind are somewhat rare on campus.
"I would not say that we deal with it a lot," she says, "but we have had items stolen from buildings, I believe we’ve had art pieces stolen."
Pictures of the pencil indicate it was fastened to its platform with four metal bolts. According to police, the cedar wood sculpture weighed about 200 pounds and is worth approximately $9,000.
Baunach says police have had mixed success solving prior such crimes.
"We’re hoping that somebody in our community will step forward," she says, "and if they know where the pencil is or if they have any information that would lead to the recovery of the sculpture, we would really appreciate it."
Purdue installed the pencil five years ago in Founders Park, along with a giant moon and seismograph, as part of its “Makers All” branding campaign. The pencil was erected to celebrate the Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL.)
