Stolen Picasso works found after six years

Paintings by Picasso which were stolen nearly six years ago from a Zurich gallery, owned by Max G. Bollag (pictured), have reappeared and been handed back. An anonymous mediator who organised the handover was rewarded with two of the recovered pictures.

Paintings by Picasso which were stolen nearly six years ago from a Zurich art gallery, owned by Max G. Bollag (pictured), have reappeared and been handed back. An anonymous mediator who organised the handover was rewarded with two of the recovered pictures.

The seven works were stolen from the Art Gallery Max G.Bollag in 1994. The auction house, Sotheby’s, estimated their combined value at around SFr8 million. Although the art thieves were caught and convicted in 1996, the stolen paintings themselves vanished without a trace.

Zurich city police say the anonymous mediator did not reveal where the paintings were kept or how they were recovered, but said the five paintings which were returned to their owners are being stored at a secret location.

The five paintings by the Spanish painter, revered in the art world as the father of cubism, include “Negro assis,” “El Christo del Montmartre,” and “Vieille Femme et deux Nus.” The anonymous mediator was rewarded with “Le jeune Cavalier” and “Vieillard et Fillette.”

From staff and wire reports.