This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-20931437

The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 2 Version 3
Stolen $1m Henri Matisse recovered Stolen $1m Henri Matisse recovered
(35 minutes later)
A Henri Matisse painting stolen in 1987 and valued at $1m (£620,000) has been found by an art recovery specialist in London. A stolen Henri Matisse painting, valued at $1m (£620,000), has been found by an art recovery specialist in London.
Le Jardin, or The Garden, was taken from the Museum of Modern Art in Stockholm during a robbery in the early hours of 11 May, 1987.Le Jardin, or The Garden, was taken from the Museum of Modern Art in Stockholm during a robbery in the early hours of 11 May, 1987.
According to reports at the time, attempts were made to sell it back to the museum for exorbitant sums.According to reports at the time, attempts were made to sell it back to the museum for exorbitant sums.
The artwork is to be returned to the Swedish museum in the coming weeks. The recovery came after an art dealer in Essex was offered the painting by a Polish collector just before Christmas.
The Art Loss Register, (ALR) a database of stolen, missing and looted artwork has been searching the market for the painting for the last 22 years. Before handling the work, Charles Roberts, of Charles Fine Art, made a search of the Art Loss Register (ALR), a database of stolen, missing and looted artwork.
A few weeks ago there was a search against its database from a fine art dealer in Essex, Charles Roberts. Once the match was confirmed, the recovery was handed to ALR director Christopher Marinello, who successfully negotiated the return of the painting, after convincing the individual concerned to release it to the UK.
He was carrying out due diligence, serving to confirm all material facts in regards to the sale, before handling the Matisse. "No payments were made, no arms were broken," Mr Marinello told the BBC.
Once the match was confirmed, the recovery was handed to ALR director Christopher Marinello, who successfully negotiated the return of the painting. The French Impressionist painting is now being held in a safe. It will be handed to the Swedish Ministry of Culture for its return to Stockholm in the coming weeks.
"Art historians are invaluable on art recovery cases, said Marinello. 'No real value'
"The ALR would not have been able to match and recover this painting without the steadfast dedication of ALR staff members, Malavika Baishya, Olivia Tate, and Pauline Geskes." Matisse's work was the only one taken in the audacious 1987 raid. Burglars broke through the museum's front entrance with a sledgehammer, and unscrewed it from the wall.
Over the past seven years, Marinello, who is also a lawyer has been responsible for recovering or negotiating settlements in cases involving more than £160m in stolen and looted artwork. They escaped before private guards arrived, 10 minutes after an alarm was triggered, and the whereabouts of the painting have been a mystery ever since.
He said that Lars Nittive, the director of Stockholm's Museum of Modern Art in 1987, was absolutely correct when he told reporters that the painting was too well known to sell on the open market. At the time of the theft, a spokesman for the museum said the painting was too "well-known" to "sell on the open market".
"I commend the museum for not giving in to ransom demands a quarter century ago. Stolen artwork has no real value in the legitimate marketplace and will eventually resurface... it's just a matter of waiting it out." Mr Marinello agreed with the sentiment, adding: "I commend the museum for not giving in to ransom demands a quarter century ago.
Museum officials congratulated the ALR on the recovery of the work, which is expected to be returned to the museum through the Swedish Ministry of Culture in the coming weeks. "Stolen artwork has no real value in the legitimate marketplace and will eventually resurface... it's just a matter of waiting it out."
He said the ALR would normally receive a small fee from insurers for recovering a stolen painting. However, the Matisse was government-owned and uninsured.
"Let's just say this was a Christmas present for the people of Sweden," said Mr Marinello.