'Stolen' painting returns to presidential palace

The painting by Roman Kochanowski (1857-1945) entitled “Gooseherd” (“Gęsiarka”) along with another item were reported missing from the palace in September after then-president Bronisław Komorowski and his staff moved out.

The loss of these two art pieces was reported to the police by the staff of the new president, Andrzej Duda.

“We have not found them, so we are compiling an inventory of all the items in the palace. We are not sure we will ever find these artworks,” a presidential spokeswoman told the Gazeta Wyborcza daily in September 2015, adding that “Gooseherd” had been spotted in an auction catalogue.

The painting was eventually sold by the Warsaw-based Rempex auction house.

A ceremony on Saturday saw the painting returned to the presidential palace in Warsaw.

“After a long wait, the painting, which was stolen last spring from the Presidential Palace, has finally been returned to us,” presidential spokesman Marek Magierowski said. (rg)