Painting stolen from Italian museum over 60 years ago found at Zeeland auction

A painting stolen from the Civico Ala Ponzone museum in Cremona, Italy, over 60 years ago has surfaced at an art auction in Middelburg, Zeeland. An employee from the Italian museum recognized the painting at the art auction this spring and called the police, De Telegraaf reports.

The work involved is titled l’Interno Benedicente by Renaissance painter Galeazzo Campi (1475-1536). Art historians believe Campi painted the 16 by 22-centimeter panel early in the 16th century. It was stolen in 1959 and disappeared without a trace until surfacing in Zeeland this spring.

“The man immediately called in the Carabinieri Tutela Patrimonio Culturale, the Italian police’s art team. And these police officers signaled us,” Richard Bronswijk of the Dutch police’s Art Crime Team told the Telegraaf.

The police approached the auction house in Korendijk to find out where they got the stolen work. “The man who offered the work buys up the contents of houses, for example, after the death of residents,” Bronswijk said. “It turned out that he had owned it for some time and no longer knew where it came from. The most important thing for us was that the work was found. The Italians were really overjoyed.”

The artwork will be returned to the Civico Ala Ponzone. “The work is worth about 5,000 euros, but for the museum, the emotional value is especially great.”

Who stole the artwork and how it ended up in the Netherlands is still unclear.