A solid gold toilet worth £1m has been stolen from Blenheim Palace, police have confirmed.
The luxurious loo, installed at the stately home earlier this month, was stolen shortly before 5am on Saturday.
A 66-year-old man has been arrested in connection with the incident, but the installation remains missing.
The palace was closed on Saturday for investigation, and ‘significant damage and flooding’ has reportedly been done to the building.
The fully functioning 18-carat toilet, created by Italian contemporary artist Maurizio Cattelan, was previously shown at the Guggenheim in New York in 2016, where visitors queued for hours for the chance to take a seat on the extravagant installation.
Detective Inspector Jess Milne, said: “The piece of art that has been stolen is a high value toilet made out of gold that was on display at the palace.
“Due to the toilet being plumbed in to the building, this has caused significant damage and flooding.
“We believe a group offenders used at least two vehicles during the offence.
“The artwork has not been recovered at this time but we are conducting a thorough investigation to find it and bring those responsible to justice.”
Thames Valley Police have confirmed that nobody was injured during the burglary.
Officers are set to remain in the area in order to carry out enquiries into the incident.
Members of the public with any information about the incident have been urged to contact police on 101, quoting URN 273 (14/9), get into touch online, or visit a police station.