Was This Renoir Bought At A Flea Market?
Thank God it never ended up on “Antiques Roadshow“: A small Pierre-Auguste Renoir landscape painting has set off a dispute between a major American art museum and a woman who said she purchased the painting for just $7 at a flea market in 2009. The Baltimore Museum of Art said the Renoir was stolen from its premises in 1951. A court hearing is scheduled for Friday to determine whether the museum or Virginia resident Martha Fuqua is the rightful owner of the painting. Renoir’s 1879 painting “Paysage Bords de Seine” depicts a lush, verdant landscape on the banks of the Seine. The painting, which is smaller than standard letter-size paper, has been seized by the FBI, which has estimated its value at $22,000, according to reports.
