Holland – Sacred Art Painting Returned To Art Detective After Being Stolen Six Months Ago
Six paintings, including an artwork of sacred art, stolen from the town hall in Medemblik, a small town in northern Holland, were returned in an unusual home delivery to an art detective.
As CNN and Dutch media report, Arthur Brand, an art detective who helped restore a Van Gogh painting last month as well as a Picasso painting, was watching TV at home on Friday night when the doorbell rang announcing the delivery. The courier, who was reportedly not involved in the robbery, unloaded the package, which contained six historical paintings believed to be worth more than €100,000 (about $106,000). After examining the incredible find, Brand called the police.
The paintings were stolen from the Medemblik town hall after a break-in in early September 2023.
“I think this was a direct result of the recovery of the Van Gogh last month. That made headlines all over the world and one of the reasons the Van Gogh was returned was that they couldn’t do anything with it – sell it or get a lesser sentence. Most likely (the Medemblik thieves) got scared and maybe there was a possibility the police were on their tracks already. You either burn it, which is a bad idea because when you are caught later you get extra prison time, or they thought they would dump it at my doorstep.” – Arthur Brand
