The statue was designed by artist Valentina Picozzi, and is a symbol of Bitcoin’s cultural movement. Its destruction sparked outrage across the crypto community, with many seeing the act as senseless vandalism rather than theft. Satoshigallery, the art collective behind the piece, confirmed its recovery. The motive behind the act is still unclear, but some attribute it to Swiss National Day celebrations. Bitcoin Icon Statue Recovered The iconic “disappearing” statue of Bitcoin’s pseudonymous creator, Satoshi Nakamoto, was recovered after being reported stolen over the weekend. The statue is a centerpiece of the Bitcoin community located in Parco Ciani, a scenic park in the Swiss city of Lugano, and was discovered in Lake Lugano by municipal workers. According to Satoshigallery,which is the art collective behind the installation, the statue was found in several broken pieces. This suggests that the act was one of vandalism rather than an attempt to sell or profit from the artwork. The statue was welded to its base at two points on the feet, which stayed attached after the statue was forcibly removed. The piece, designed by Italian artist and Bitcoin advocate Valentina Picozzi, was unveiled in October of 2024 and was very quickly recognized as a global symbol for Bitcoin’s cultural movement. The statue took 21 months to plan and construct, and its presence in Lugano served as a visual tribute to the anonymous figure who created Bitcoin. It comes as no surprise then that its sudden removal caused strong emotions from the crypto community, many of whom took to social media to express their anger and frustration over the desecration of what they consider a cultural landmark. Pieces of the broken Satoshi Nakamoto statue (Source: Gritto ) Satoshigallery offered a reward of 0.1 BTC—which is valued at more than $11,000—for any information that would lead to the statue's recovery. The collective has not yet issued a detailed statement beyond confirming the recovery. Bitcoin advocates including Gabor Gurbacs, CEO of Pointsville, criticized the act by calling it “tasteless and stupid.” Others speculated that the statue’s destruction may have been the result of drunken revelry related to Swiss National Day celebrations. Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino reacted with a simple heart emoji, while Satoshigallery declared , “You can steal our symbol, but you will never be able to steal our souls.”
