Picasso & Mondrian Paintings Recovered Nearly A Decade After Greek Heist
Mondrian’s ‘Stammer Windmill’. Image by Netherlands Institute for Art History via Wikimedia Commons (public domain)
A painting that Pablo Picasso presented as a gift to the National Art Gallery of Athens in 1946 was inscribed with a special message from the artist: “For the Greek people, a tribute from Picasso.”
However, in 2012, two thieves broke into the gallery to steal the painting, along with a Mondrian, and it was mourned as a national loss.
Now, nine years after the “near-perfect” heist, Greek police announced that Picasso’s Head of a Woman, along with Piet Mondrian’s Stammer Windmill, have finally been recovered.
According to The Washington Post, the paintings were found in a crypt in Keratea, a town located in the East Attica on mainland Greece.
Using leads from a “stunning tip”, as reported by Artnet News, Greek police learnt that the paintings could still be local, and was allegedly put up for sale for US$20 million on the black market. But due to the high profile of the paintings, there were no buyers.
While it’s unclear if the two thieves who conducted the original heist have been arrested, The Washington Post reported that a suspect is currently in police custody.
Stolen Picasso "Head of a Woman” painting (from the National Gallery in 2012) found in Athens. Painted in 1939, it was gifted by Picasso in 1946 in recognition of Greece’s resistance to Nazi occupation; he inscribed on the back: “For the Greek people, a tribute from Picasso.” pic.twitter.com/b45jgEtaff
— Nikos Agouros (@NikosAg) June 28, 2021
[via The Washington Post, cover image via Netherlands Institute for Art History via Wikimedia Commons (public domain)]
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