Online Reporter
Farai Diza
BULAWAYO has witnessed several heists in recent years, with criminals constantly devising innovative ways to make a quick fortune. While some perpetrators have been apprehended, others have disappeared into obscurity, taking their ill-gotten gains with them. One of the most audacious and unforgettable robberies occurred in February 1998, leaving the City of Kings and Queens stunned and attracting international headlines. The target was none other than the prized One Thousand Guinea Trophy, a glittering artefact containing five kilogrammes of gold, stolen during a daring night-time break-in at the Natural History Museum, located adjacent to Centenary Park.
Centenary Park, often referred to as the lover’s paradise, holds a romantic reputation, yet few realise that they may have shared tender moments just metres away from the scene of a multimillion-dollar theft. The One Thousand Guinea Trophy, valued at an astonishing US$50 million at the time, has never been recovered. Its name remains a mystery, but its history is undeniably fascinating. The trophy was a central feature of the annual collaboration between the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair company and the Bulawayo Agricultural Society Show, events that have long been woven into the city’s cultural fabric.
In the “good old days,” inclusion in the “Official Opening” was a coveted honour, where attendees donned hats and gloves and enjoyed cucumber sandwiches alongside governors and mayors from Zimbabwe’s cosmopolitan cities.
Crowds would flock to the Trade Fair grounds, hoping to catch a glimpse of the late former president Robert Mugabe, as the atmosphere buzzed with excitement and anticipation. The Grand Cattle Parade, held on the final Saturday, was a spectacle of hundreds of prize Brahmans, Nkonis, Afrikanders, Tulis, Ayreshires, and other valuable breeds, all marching in synchrony to the stirring sounds of police or army bands.
Amid this grandeur, the One Thousand Guinea Trophy stood proudly before dignitaries in the main stand — a magnificent symbol of Zimbabwe’s once-renowned breeding herd, the finest in Southern Africa. Given its immense value, the trophy was heavily guarded.
“The trophy was valued in terms of its significance as a historical and cultural symbol. This trophy is unique. It is the only one of its kind in the world and considering all these facts, it has been valued at US$50 million,” said Albert Kumirai, the regional director of museums at the time.
Yet, on the warm night of Wednesday February 15, 1998, robbers managed to bypass every layer of security. Police were baffled by the absence of any signs of forced entry, raising suspicions of an inside job. A source quoted anonymously by the Chronicle at the time remarked, “It looks suspiciously like an inside job.” It was believed that the cabinet housing the trophy had been smashed around 2AM, triggering a silent alarm. A reaction team from a city security company arrived within five minutes, but the thieves had already vanished, having evaded the patrolling security guard.
Investigations later revealed that the culprits had exited through a double glass door on the museum’s first floor, using a rope tied to a handrail. A chain that normally secured the museum’s sliding doors had been unscrewed. In scenes reminiscent of a Hollywood heist, it was suspected that the thieves used the rope to swing out of the building, having “blinded” two ground-mounted floodlights with sheets of cardboard. Authorities believed the perpetrators had remained inside the museum after closing hours, suggesting a co-ordinated effort between insiders and outsiders.
All artefacts at the Natural History Museum are meant to be accounted for during internal audits, yet this theft exposed vulnerabilities in the system. To illustrate the trophy’s value, one might compare it to Van Gogh’s Poppy Flowers, a haunting depiction of yellow and red poppies stolen in 2010 and still unrecovered, valued at US$55 million. The theft of the One Thousand Guinea Trophy remains one of the most spectacular heists ever to shake Bulawayo.
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