Police, art sleuth crack case of Brueghel stolen in Poland in 1974

“Woman Carrying the Embers,” painted by Pieter Brueghel the Younger around 1626, vanished from the National Museum in Gdansk in 1974 during communist rule, sparking rumors of Polish secret service involvement. The small round painting, measuring 17 cm (6.6 inches), was later found in a museum in Limburg, Netherlands. Dutch police art crime expert Richard Bronswijk confirmed that it is the same painting that disappeared in 1974.

Polish authorities too confirmed the painting’s recovery, saying “we are in constant contact with Dutch authorities, including the Dutch police, regarding the case.”

Arthur Brand, a Dutch art detective, became suspicious when journalists from *Vind* magazine spotted a painting at an exhibition last year, billed as “not seen for the past 40 years.” Loaned from a private collection to the Gouda Museum, the painting caught the eye of contributor John Brozius, who uncovered an old article on a Polish website linking the artwork to a 1974 theft in Gdansk. The article mentioned two stolen works, including a Brueghel painting. The small painting, depicting a woman holding embers and water, seemed to reference a Dutch proverb about duplicity. Though its exact value is unknown, Brueghel’s works typically fetch millions. Brand, known for recovering stolen art, teamed up with Dutch police to investigate. After confirming the painting’s identity through Interpol’s database and a detailed inspection, they confirmed it was the same artwork that had vanished in 1974. Polish authorities have been informed and are taking steps to return the painting. Gouda Museum’s curator expressed surprise but excitement over the painting’s rediscovery.

The theft was first discovered on April 24, 1974, when a museum worker accidentally knocked the Brueghel off a wall.

“Instead of the original work by the famous Flemish painter, a reproduction cut out of a magazine fell out of the frame,” stolen Polish arts expert Mariusz Pilus wrote in “Arts Sherlock” in 2019.

Days later, a Polish customs officer who had reported the illegal export of artworks through the Baltic port of Gdynia, is said to have been set alight and killed, shortly before he was to be interviewed by police.

Investigations into the death and the paintings’ disappearance were shut down shortly after, Polish reports said.

Dutch police are now investigating how the painting ended up in a private Dutch collection.

Brand said he hoped the Brueghel could soon be returned to Gdansk, “to be put on display, in a museum, where it belongs.”

Source: AFP