BERLIN (January 29, 2013)—Someone has taken the rectangular 44-pound gilded bronze cookie sculpture that was part of a statue gracing the facade of German cookie baker Bahlsen's Hannover office.

Exactly how the century-old symbol was taken remains unclear, but police said that witnesses reported seeing two men with a ladder in the area earlier this month.

The company has offered $1,350 for information leading to the cookie's recovery.

A police statement said a local newspaper received a picture Tuesday showing someone in an outfit similar to Sesame Street's Cookie Monster holding a golden cookie.

The sender wrote to demand cookies be delivered to children at a city hospital, but police aren’t sure if it's the same cookie, or a real claim of responsibility.