More than 200 unknown Picasso artworks discovered in France

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More than 200 unknown Picasso artworks discovered in France

2010-11-30 13:26:32 GMT+7 (ICT)

PARIS (BNO NEW) — Over 200 previously undiscovered Picasso artworks valued at €60 million ($80 million) have been found in the house of a retired 71-year-old French electrician, local media reported Monday.

Police initially arrested Pierre Le Guennec after Picasso's son, Claude, who runs his father's estate, suspected him of stealing the pieces of artwork.

The collection includes 271 paintings, drawings, sketches, and lithographs dating from 1900 to 1932, considered to be Picasso's most creative period. It includes nine cubist collages, which have been valued to be worth at least €40 million ($53 million).

In August, Le Guennec had sent 26 pictures of the works to Claude Picasso, 61, in order for them to be authenticated. And even though Le Guennec believed they were fakes since there was no record of them, he was intrigued enough to invite him to bring them over to be reviewed.

On September 9, Le Guennec traveled from his home on the Côte d’Azur to the Picasso Administration headquarters in Paris. Surprisingly, he began unpacking 175 previously unknown pieces and 97 drawings.

Le Guennec has claimed that Picasso himself gave him the pieces after installing alarm systems in the painter's homes in La Californie in Cannes, the Chateau de Vauvenargues and the mill at Notre Dame de Vie in Mougins, where Picasso died.

The Picasso family has filed a lawsuit against an unknown group of people, including Le Guennec for illegally receiving the artworks, but art experts agree that even the biggest counterfeiter could not have gathered such a collection.

"To give away such a large quantity, that's unheard of. It doesn't hold water. This was part of his life," Claude Picasso said, as police continue to investigate the situation.

"He always dated, signed and wrote dedications in his gifts, knowing that some people would go on to sell them to meet their needs," he added.

Le Guennec and his wife, who say that they do not want to sell the pieces, were arrested and taken into custody. They were later released as no charges have been formally filed.

Authorities are currently holding the large group of art pieces, which was seized after police raided and arrested the couple.

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