If you're local to the Chicago area, you may or may not have seen the news- 

 

Yesterday, staff at the Art Institute of Chicago applied masks to the Lions outside the building, and sadly overnight, someone stole one of those masks. Thankfully, the lion is made of bronze and has not been left vulnerable to the pandemic. But, come on y'all, that's not nice. 

Sculpted by Edward Kemeys in 1893, the Lions were unveiled the following year and have stood guard outside the museum ever since. They've become an icon of the city, and you'll frequently see lines of tourists forming just to get a picture with the cats. Although be warned, you are not allowed to ride them. I know, its really tempting. 

Not only have they guarded the museum, they play along with our city's celebrations. They traditionally wear wreaths during the holiday season, and in recent decades have donned Chicago Cubs, Bears, Sox, and Blackhawks helmets. 

Photo courtesy of Señor Codo, Wikipedia Commons 

And in fact, this is not the first time the poor cats have had their accessories stolen. In 1985, two men stole one of the lion's Chicago Bears helmet, loaded it into a Lincoln Continental, and "drove home on the Eisenhower with the trunk lid half open."  Not sure what they did with a large, 50lb helmet once they got home, but I'm not here to judge others' interior design tastes. 

To learn more about the history of the lions, visit the Art Institute's website 

To hear the Lions roaring, visit their twitter page: https://twitter.com/ChicagoLions