Mystery Persists as Missing Swiss Paintings Reappear 

A man walks past the entrance of the Kunsthaus Zurich art museum on March 14, 2023. (AFP)
A man walks past the entrance of the Kunsthaus Zurich art museum on March 14, 2023. (AFP)
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Mystery Persists as Missing Swiss Paintings Reappear 

A man walks past the entrance of the Kunsthaus Zurich art museum on March 14, 2023. (AFP)
A man walks past the entrance of the Kunsthaus Zurich art museum on March 14, 2023. (AFP)

One of the Switzerland's top art museums announced Sunday the return of two paintings that went missing last year, refusing to provide details in a case still under investigation.

Kunsthaus Zurich offered in June 2023 a reward of 10,000 Swiss francs ($11,100) for information that could help it track one painting by Flemish painter Robert van den Hoecke and another by the Dutch Golden Age artist Dirck de Bray.

The small paintings disappeared when the Kunsthaus took down more than 700 works for cleaning and restoration after a fire broke out in August 2022.

But no trace of the two paintings could later be found.

On Sunday, the museum said only that its restoration experts had confirmed both paintings were in "good condition", with no indication of how or when they turned up.

Because of ongoing police inquiries, "no further information will be released for the time being," the Kunsthaus said.

Museum officials had alerted the missing works to the Art Loss Register, the world's largest database of lost and stolen pieces.



Jeddah Book Fair Concludes

The event was organized by the Literature, Publishing, and Translation Commission at the Jeddah Superdome under the slogan "Jeddah Reads". (SPA)
The event was organized by the Literature, Publishing, and Translation Commission at the Jeddah Superdome under the slogan "Jeddah Reads". (SPA)
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Jeddah Book Fair Concludes

The event was organized by the Literature, Publishing, and Translation Commission at the Jeddah Superdome under the slogan "Jeddah Reads". (SPA)
The event was organized by the Literature, Publishing, and Translation Commission at the Jeddah Superdome under the slogan "Jeddah Reads". (SPA)

The Jeddah Book Fair came to a close on Saturday after 10 days during which it hosted more than 1,000 local, Arab, and international publishing houses and agencies.

The event was organized by the Literature, Publishing, and Translation Commission at the Jeddah Superdome under the slogan "Jeddah Reads".

The fair boasted over 450 pavilions, providing an exceptional cultural experience for visitors.

Commission CEO Dr. Mohammad Hasan Alwan thanked the Saudi leadership for its unwavering support for the cultural movement in the Kingdom.

This was the third edition of the fair to be held this year, with Riyadh and Madinah hosting the first two.

Alwan said the fair drew a remarkable attendance, which testifies to the development of the cultural scene in the Kingdom.

About 400,000 titles were displayed and over 450,000 books covering a range of topics were sold.

The Ministry of Culture is seeking to transform the Kingdom into a major platform for the publishing and distribution industry by providing an ideal environment that meets the needs of both readers and publishing houses, Alwan said.