Doubts cast on authenticity of Picasso in Iraq
The AP reports: Authorities in the art world casted some doubt yesterday on the authenticity of an alleged Picasso painting that was seized by Iraqi police south of Baghdad.
A painting called "The Naked Woman" that police claimed was painted by Picasso was seized near the southern city of Hillah on Tuesday after the man allegedly tried to sell it for $450,000.
Iraqi police said the painting appeared to have been stolen from Kuwait following Saddam Hussein's 1990 invasion. But evidence seemed to mount yesterday that it was not a genuine Picasso.
The painting has a tag on the back with several misspellings that says it was sold by "the louvre" to "the museum of kuwait," with the words Louvre and Kuwait in lower case. There are also several stamps bearing the name of the Louvre Museum in Paris.
But an official with the Louvre Museum said it has never had a Picasso in its collection and does not sell its works because they are government property. The official spoke on condition of anonymity according to museum policy.
The London-based Art Loss Registry said it has no record of any paintings missing from the Kuwait National Museum, and no record of this particular painting as missing at all.
A painting called "The Naked Woman" that police claimed was painted by Picasso was seized near the southern city of Hillah on Tuesday after the man allegedly tried to sell it for $450,000.Iraqi police said the painting appeared to have been stolen from Kuwait following Saddam Hussein's 1990 invasion. But evidence seemed to mount yesterday that it was not a genuine Picasso.
The painting has a tag on the back with several misspellings that says it was sold by "the louvre" to "the museum of kuwait," with the words Louvre and Kuwait in lower case. There are also several stamps bearing the name of the Louvre Museum in Paris.
But an official with the Louvre Museum said it has never had a Picasso in its collection and does not sell its works because they are government property. The official spoke on condition of anonymity according to museum policy.
The London-based Art Loss Registry said it has no record of any paintings missing from the Kuwait National Museum, and no record of this particular painting as missing at all.
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