Stolen Picasso painting found nine years after elaborate Athens art heist

Paintings by Picasso and Mondrian were stolen from Greek gallery in 2012

(REUTERS)

A missing Pablo Picasso painting has been recovered nine years after it was stolen from a Greek gallery.

Back in 2012, two works of art were stripped from their frames and stolen during an elaborate heist at the Athens National Gallery.

The thieves deliberately triggered the gallery’s security alarm in order to distract the guards, who eventually turned it off and allowed them to steal the paintings.

These included Picasso’s 1939 artwork, titled “Woman’s Head”, as well as a painting of a windmill by Piet Mondrian dating back to 1905. The thieves attempted to steal a second painting by the Dutch artist during the heist, but dropped it while escaping.

As reported by Reuters, the works were returned on Monday (28 June), with an anonymous Greek police official reporting that the art was found at a gorge on the outskirts of Athens with a man being arrested.

Spanish artist Picasso personally gifted “Woman’s Head” to the Athens National Gallery in 1949.

The painting, which shows a woman in his recognisable cubist style, was given as a gift of thanks to Greece for their resistance to Nazi rule.