Courtesy of nbcnews.com
Picasso’s 1911 painting “La Coiffeuse,” stolen in 2001 from France, has been seized by United States customs agents.
It was shipped from Belgium to the United States and labeled as a Christmas present. Humorously, the painting was labeled as a craft and valued at 30 Euros, or about $37. The feds, however, value the painting as worth millions, after Customs discovered it and Homeland Security agents took over the case.
The painting was originally found in December, however after thorough investigation, it was found to be the stolen painting.
“A lost treasure has been found,” said Loretta Lynch, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, who also was recently approved as Attorney General.
The painting was originally stolen in 2001 from France, who had received a loan request and went to retrieve it, only to find it missing.
Art theft is the third largest black market industry in the world, and is also one of the hardest crimes to investigate, with few people and few resources dedicated to it.
The recovery of the painting is wonderful news for the art world, and will hopefully lead to the recovery of other stolen works that may be connected to it.
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