A resident of Norfolk County (UK) agreed to return the 16th-century painting “Madonna and Child” to the Italian museum of Belluno. This canvas had been missing for more than 50 years, The Guardian reports.
The Italian artist Antonio Solario painted the canvas “Madonna and Child” in the 16th century. In 1872, the Civic Museum of Belluno, where it remained until 1973, when several robbers broke into the museum and stole several paintings, acquired the painting. Some of them were later found in Austria, and “Madonna and Child” ended up in the hands of a British woman named Barbara de Doja.
In March 2025, she said that her husband, Barbara de Dozsa, honestly bought the painting shortly after the theft. The couple lived in an old 16th-century house in Norfolk. After the divorce, the painting remained with Barbara. Her name appeared in the case in 2017, when she tried to sell the painting through a regional auction house. The attempt to sell was then noticed by an employee of the Belluno museum and reported to the police.
Interpol and the Italian Carabinieri confirmed that the painting was listed in the international database of stolen works of art. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Italian authorities did not have time to hand over the necessary documents to the British police in time. As a result, the painting was returned to de Dozsa in 2020.
Art lawyer Christopher Marinello tried for many years to convince the woman to give the painting to the Belluno museum, but she refused, citing a local law that allows a person to become the owner of property if they bought it more than six years ago and did not know that it was stolen.
Soon, de Dozsa initially agreed to return the painting, but demanded compensation in the amount of £6,000 for storage, insurance and legal services. Later, the woman changed her mind and said that she wanted the full value of the painting – from £60,000 to £80,000. The lawyer said that it would be impossible to find a buyer, and in Italy, the painting would be confiscated. In the end, Barbara de Dozsa decided to return the painting free of charge. “She restored my faith in humanity,” the lawyer admitted.
