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Jim Morrison's Stolen Gravesite Bust Recovered After 37 Years

The marble sculpture, missing since 1988, was found by French police during a fraud investigation, reigniting questions about its return to Père Lachaise cemetery.

FRANCE - JUNE 01: The tomb of Jim Morrison in Paris, France in June, 1985. (Photo by Laurent MAOUS/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)
Image
The grave of Jim Morrison, lead singer of the rock group The Doors, at the Pere Lachaise cemetery in Paris, France circa 1971.
Torsten Marquardt of Germany pours some whiskey on the tomb of rock singer Jim Morrison at the Pere-Lachaise cemetery in Paris in 2021. Fans across Europe gathered at the grave of rock legend Jim Morrison to mark the 50th anniversary of his death.

Overview

  • The white marble bust, created by Croatian sculptor Mladen Mikulin in 1981 to mark the 10th anniversary of Jim Morrison's death, was stolen in 1988 from Père Lachaise cemetery in Paris.
  • French police discovered the heavily graffitied and damaged bust during an unrelated fraud investigation conducted by the Financial and Anti-Corruption Brigade in May 2025.
  • The sculpture, weighing 128 kilograms, remains in police custody, and no decision has been made regarding its return to Morrison's gravesite.
  • The curator of Père Lachaise cemetery stated that authorities have not yet contacted them about the bust's potential reinstatement at the gravesite, a global pilgrimage site for fans of The Doors.
  • Morrison, who died in Paris in 1971 at the age of 27, remains a cultural icon, and his grave continues to draw millions of visitors annually, despite heightened security measures since the bust's theft.