Stolen Van Gogh worth €6m recovered in Ikea bag by 'Indiana Jones of the art world’
12 September 2023, 16:51
An art sleuth dubbed the 'Indiana Jones of the art world’ has recovered a stolen Van Gogh painting estimated to be worth around €6 million.
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Parsonage Garden at Nuenen in Spring - an instantly recognisable Van Gough, was stolen in March 2020 from a Dutch museum by dawn raiders.
The multi-million pound painting, which had been on loan to the Singer Laren museum, was snatched by the thieves during a smash-and-grab heist at around 3.15am.
Now, the artwork has resurfaced, bundled into the Ikea bag and handed over to art sleuth Arthur Brand.
Dubbed the 'Indiana Jones' of the art world thanks to his underworld interactions and international adventures, Brand, 54, has previously tracked down international relics including Hitler’s favourite bronze sculpture and six figure Picasso paintings.
The artwork, which has since been described by Brand as being "a little bit cursed", is said to have been passed around the underbelly of the art world due to its diminishing value.
Painted in 1884, recent years saw a drugs baron in possession of the relic according to Brand - an individual who tried to exchange the artwork for a lighter jail sentence.
“He was told ‘No deal’,” said Brand. “The Van Gogh simply got too hot.”
Events heated up after Brand received a text on August 29 from “a man who had nothing to with the theft” - an individual who was said to be standing across from the sleuth at a drinks party.
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Just six months after the Van Gogh heist, another similar raid saw Frans Hals 'Two Laughing Boys' taken from a museum in Leerdam, in the Netherlands.
Estimated to be worth around €15 million, the painting remains at large, with 60-year-old Nils M, a French-born art thief, sentenced to eight years in prison for the thefts in July 2022.
Despite the arrest, the painting remained uncounted for.
That was until Brand is said to have received a knock at the door following negotiations with contacts in the art underworld.
He was visited at his Amsterdam apartment by an individual holding a battered, blue Ikea bag.
“The last few weeks have been very nerve-racking. I didn’t sleep a wink until it turned up on Monday afternoon,” he told The Times following the recovery of the Van Gogh.
