Two religious paintings from the 18th centurywhich had been stolen from a historic Peruvian church On the banks of Titicaca lakewere handed over to the authorities of that country in NYin a ceremony by the Department of Homeland Security Investigations Office.
The paintings Flight to Egypt and The Pilgrim Virgin, by unidentified artists, had been stolen more than a decade ago from the historic Church of Our Lady of the Assumption, in the town of Juli, southern Peru, and were then transferred to Manhattan for sale.
The paintings had been seized last fall after the Peruvian Ministry of Culture contacted the Doyle auction house, which had been approached to sell them, raising concerns that the works had been stolen, The Art reported. Newspaper.
The works are inspired by the colonial-era Cuzco school of painting, an ornate style of devotional art dominated by bright colors and exclusively Catholic themes, which would have been used in efforts to convert the region’s Inca population. .
In addition to these two paintings delivered this week to Peruvian authorities, thieves took six other paintings from the church of Our Lady of the Assumption, along with several bronze and silver ritual objects, in robberies committed in 2012, according to media reports. of Peruvian communication.
Marita Landaveri, consul general of Peru in New York, appreciated the gesture of the New York authorities.
“We are deeply grateful for the cooperation of New York authorities in the successful recovery of two important colonial paintings, which will soon be returned to the people of Peru,” he said.
Likewise, he considered that the collaboration “underlines our continued commitment to combating trafficking in cultural heritage, and we anticipate a continued partnership in these vital efforts.”
The recovery and repatriation of the works was made possible by the joint efforts of Peruvian government authorities, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office, and United States Homeland Security Investigations.
“It doesn’t matter whether an antique or a painting was stolen ten years ago or 10,000 years ago: a stolen object is a stolen object,” Bragg said in a statement. “This investigation makes clear that looting and trafficking are far from a thing of the past, and we will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to aggressively root out and dismantle these schemes.”
Source: Ambito
