A marble bust of legendary American singer, songwriter, and poet Jim Morrison, stolen from his grave in Paris nearly four decades ago, has been unexpectedly recovered during an unrelated police investigation, French authorities revealed.
The statue, originally installed at the Père-Lachaise cemetery to mark the 10th anniversary of the iconic singer's death, vanished in 1988. Created by Croatian sculptor Mladen Mikulin, the white marble bust was a tribute to the legendary frontman of The Doors, whose grave has long been a pilgrimage site for rock enthusiasts and counterculture devotees.
According to an Instagram post by French police, the bust was found amid a probe led by the financial and anti-corruption unit in Paris. The investigation was not related to the 1988 theft. A source told Agence France-Presse that the discovery came during a fraud case, offering no further detail on the theft itself. No suspects have been named.
The statue was found damaged, with its nose and mouth already missing—an alteration noted before its disappearance. Authorities have yet to confirm whether the bust will be restored to its original spot in the cemetery. "The police haven't contacted us, so I don't know whether the bust will be returned to us," the curator of Père-Lachaise told Le Figaro.
Speaking to Rolling Stone, a representative of the Morrison estate welcomed the development, saying they were "happy to hear the news" and called the sculpture a "piece of history". They added, "Morrison's family wanted it on the grave so it's gratifying to see that it's been recovered."
Morrison's tomb has long attracted fervent fans, some leaving behind flowers, others scrawling graffiti across nearby gravestones. Located in the cemetery's "poet's corner," his grave sits among those of Edith Piaf and Oscar Wilde. Over the years, it has become as much a symbol of rebellion as remembrance.
Born in Florida in 1943, Morrison—son of a US Navy admiral—formed The Doors in 1965 with keyboardist Ray Manzarek in Los Angeles. The band's name drew inspiration from Aldous Huxley's "The Doors of Perception", a text exploring drug-induced consciousness. Morrison rose to fame as a charismatic, controversial figure in the late 1960s rock scene.
In 1971, at the age of 27, Morrison died suddenly in Paris. He was found dead in a bathtub in his Marais apartment by his girlfriend, Pamela Courson. The cause of death was ruled as heart failure worsened by chronic alcohol abuse.
The absence of an autopsy and the mystery surrounding his final days have only intensified the myth around him.
Controversy has never strayed far from his grave. On the 20th anniversary of his death in 1991, fans rioted at the cemetery, forcing police to intervene.
