Rudolf Ernst

Rudolf Ernst, The Sentry

"The Sentry" by Rudolf Ernst, Austrian, 1854-1932, Watercolour on paper on board, 19 1/4 x 12 5/8 in.

What do you do when you recover a stolen work of art and discover that the current "possessor" was the original theft victim who filed an insurance claim 22 years earlier? Oops.

Most of these cases result in the Insured apologising profusely and quickly offering to return the artwork (or the insurance proceeds) back to the Insurer.

Sometimes, the Insured gets on a plane from Chicago with his wife and offers to write a cheque in front of you (provided you get the FBI off his back). We did this on one occasion and the art dealer got arrested anyway years later for something else. see 👉 https://lnkd.in/eUEgGZks

Or, we get no cooperation or communication whatsoever and we have to get the insured arrested. see 👉 https://lnkd.in/e6YNRdqw

Sometimes people find their own stolen artwork being offered for sale and "forget" to notify their insurance company. It can happen.
see 👉 https://lnkd.in/e8wAE4q6

Then, there are the billionaires who need to choose between prosecuting their child for art theft, or reimbursing their insurance company. Tough choice for some. see 👉 https://lnkd.in/eS5q9AFi

So what happened with this Rudolf Ernst painting 👇 here today? The insured, when notified that their "stolen" artwork was being offered for sale, swiftly agreed to release the painting to the insurance company instead of returning the claim proceeds. It seems that it was an "innocent mistake" following a chaotic flood at their property 22 years ago.

However, the possessor did one thing that 90% of people do in these unfortunate circumstances. She blamed her husband for the error.