Stolen paintings worth millions found on a kitchen wall in Sicily

An Italian police officer stands next to one of the stolen paintings, French artist Pierre Bonnard's 'La femme aux deux fauteuils'. Photo: ANDREAS SOLARO/AFP/Getty Images

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Two stolen paintings worth millions of dollars have been discovered on a kitchen wall in Sicily. The Paul Gauguin and Pierre Bonnard paintings were stolen from a house in London, England in 1970. A Fiat employee bought them for just over $500 dollars at a lost property sale in Turin nearly 40 years ago.



Italian minister of culture Dario Franceschini (L) and General of Carabinieri Mariano Mossa stand next to the two stolen paintings at the unveiling in Italy yesterday Photo: ANDREAS SOLARO/AFP/Getty Images

Police unveiled the stolen pictures, Paul Gaugin's 'Fruits sur une table' and Pierre Bonnard's 'La femme aux deux fauteils', yesterday. And they have been valued at about $16 million to $45 million Canadian for the pair.



The two pictures: Paul Gauguin's 'Fruits sur une table ou nature morte au petit chien', (L) and Pierre Bonnard's 'La femme aux deux fauteuils'  Photo: ANDREAS SOLARO/AFP/Getty Images

Mr. Nicola - the pseudonym Italian papers are using for the current owner - didn't realise the true value of his purchase until recently. He had bought them at Turin station's lost property sale in 1975 for 45,000 lira, about $550 Canadian in today's money, and hung the pictures on his kitchen wall at his home in the city when he was working for Fiat. The pictures then came with him after Mr. Nicola retired to Sicily.



Photo: ANDREAS SOLARO/AFP/Getty Images

The pictures true identity only came to light after Mr Nicola's son saw a photograph of Pierre Bonnard sitting in his garden and noticed the similarity to the garden in the picture on his father's wall. And that is when they got in touch with art experts, who then contacted the police.



Photo: ANDREAS SOLARO/AFP/Getty Images

The paintings were originally hanging in a home in London, England until they were stolen in June 1970, only then to be left on a train in Italy. What happens to the paintings now is still to be determined, but Mr. Nicola wants them back. He told Italy's La Repubblica newspaper, "They were bought in good faith . . . Above all, they were bought through the state, and the institutions can't deny this".



Italian minister of culture Dario Franceschini (L) and General of Carabinieri Mariano Mossa shake hands in front of the two stolen paintings  Photo: ANDREAS SOLARO/AFP/Getty Images

The Guardian's Rome correspondent, Lizzy Davies, has been covering the story and she tells Carol that how the pictures ended up in Turin station's lost property is still a mystery, but the owner is just proud he was able to spot beautiful art that others had dismissed as junk.

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