Two Picasso paintings worth millions recovered in Serbia

Two Picasso paintings worth millions recovered in Serbia

2011-10-26 21:09:35 GMT+7 (ICT)

BELGRADE, SERBIA (BNO NEWS) -- Two stolen Pablo Picasso paintings worth millions of dollars were recovered in Serbia on Wednesday, officials said. Meanwhile, another Picasso painting was stolen in Colombia.

The stolen paintings, 'Head of horse' and 'Glass and pitcher', were found in the Serbian city of Belgrade after being stolen from an exhibition in the Swiss town of Pfaeffikon near Zurich in February 2008, the country's Interior Ministry said.

Serbian Interior Minister Ivica DaÄić told broadcaster B92 that the Serbian Counter-Organized Crime Service had recovered the paintings, not long after Swiss State prosecutor Charles Faessier had announced that a Swiss official had been sent to Serbia to recover the paintings.

The pair of paintings - 'Head of horse,' which was painted in 1962, and 'Glass and pitcher,' which was painted in 1944 - are valued to be worth millions of dollars. They are owned by the Sprengel Museum in Hannover, Germany but they had been loaned for an exhibition in Switzerland at the time of the theft.

It was not immediately clear if anyone had been arrested.

Meanwhile, another Picasso painting disappeared last Friday from the Edgar Negret Museum in the city of Popayan in western Colombia. The painting, which has no name, was made in 1930 and has been valued at approximately $65,000.

According to the museum's director, Oscar Hernandez, the artwork disappeared shortly after the museum's doors closed on Friday afternoon. It was last seen shortly before two foreigners entered the museum that day, although the incident was not reported until Tuesday.

Local authorities have issued a $5,000 reward for information leading to the piece.

The untitled piece had been donated to the museum by Colombian sculptor Edgar Negret, a Popayan native, in 2004. The painting portrays the Greek god of wine, Dionysus, with a woman in his arms.

Picasso, who was originally from Spain, lived most of his life in France. Despite beginning his career with realistic artworks, Picasso's style later developed until being credited with co-founding the cubist movement, which he is better known for.

In February, Picasso's 1932 'La Lecture' sold for £25.2 million ($40.7 million) during an auction at London's Sotheby's. Several famous paintings by Picasso have ranked amongst the world's most expensive, including 'Nude, Green leaves and Bust' which sold for $106.5 million in May 2010.

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