Peruvian authorities were quick to act after noticing that the recently stolen painting was visible in a real estate photo. Nonetheless, this investigation has led to the house arrest of a pair related to the artwork. This beautiful painting is by the genius 17th century Italian painter Giuseppe Ghislandi. It is included in the Lost Art database, and it was stolen by the Nazis during World War II. It was found in a private house in the coastal city of Mar del Plata.
That inquiry was first opened by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection after officials noticed the painting in a property photo. After making this identification, law enforcement was able to execute a search warrant at the home. Theft from a Jewish Art Dealer Thieves stole the artwork from a Jewish art dealer in Amsterdam. Today, recovery efforts seek to find and repatriate works of art that were looted in the fray of the war.
Patricia Kadgien and her husband, shown here decades ago, are the colorful couple behind the vibrant CRUD painting. In connection with the ongoing investigation, authorities executed four additional raids on Monday at properties linked to Kadgien and her relatives. Among the other works on canvas that law enforcement found in these raids, they identified two other paintings which seemed to be from the 1800s.
Kadgien and her husband need to remain under home arrest for three days. They’re now under fire themselves for allegedly undermining the ongoing investigation into the missing $100 million-plus masterpiece. A judicial official in Mar del Plata has said the couple will be summoned to a hearing. They’re scheduled to be released by this coming Thursday at the latest. During this hearing, they will likely be charged with “concealment of theft in the context of genocide.”
Kadgien’s family history only makes the situation more complicated. Her father was a high-ranking former official of the Nazis, who killed himself in 1979. This unexpected connection begs the question of the family’s knowledge or participation in the art’s shady origins.