A 91-year-old woman in Germany wrote all over a $116,000 artwork in pen after mistaking it for a crossword puzzle. 

The woman told Nuremberg police she took the text "insert words" which appeared alongside the work at face value and thought she was following instructions. 

Nueus museum director Eva Krause said the damage could be repaired, and that the museum did not believe the woman meant any harm.

Police were roped in for insurance reasons, Krause said. 

The work, by Danish artist Arthur Koepcke, is designed to look like a crossword puzzle. Koepcke's works often feature cuttings from newspapers and magazines.