Italy Recovers Stolen Renoir, Cezanne, Matisse Masterworks

The Magnani Rocca Foundation was established in 1977 and holds the collection of art historian Luigi Magnani. Its holdings also include works by Durer, Rubens, Van Dyck, Goya and Monet.

The March raid followed a run of high-profile European museum thefts, including the October theft from the Louvre in Paris of French crown jewels and other items worth 88 million euros ($101 million).

Separately, civil police in Sao Paulo, Brazil said Thursday they had recovered eight Matisse illustrations stolen from a library on Dec. 7 of last year, The Guardian reported. The works, made for the limited-edition art book "Jazz" and worth a combined $200,000, were found at a home in Sao Bernardo do Campo and returned to the library Thursday. Police said they believed the theft was ordered by Laessio Rodrigues de Oliveira, 53, described as one of Brazil's most prominent art thieves, who has been in custody since April in connection with another case. A man at the property, Joao Paulo Linhares de Araujo, 44, was arrested; police said he had been storing the works for people accused of involvement in the theft. Three others had been arrested earlier. Five engravings by Brazilian artist Candido Portinari taken in the same robbery are still missing, and police said they suspect those were sold.