There are questions about the Renoir painting bought at a 2009 flea market for $7 (see Kovels Komments, Sept. 19 and Oct. 3, 2012). A Federal judge is deciding who legally owns the painting. It turns out the painting had been stolen from a museum in 1951, and the insurance company paid for the loss–making the insurer the owner. The woman who says she bought the painting at a flea market is the daughter of an artist who reproduced old paintings, including those by Renoir. The woman’s brother said at first that the painting had been in the family’s home for 50 years and was not a recent find. But later he said someone else using his name told that story. Those claiming ownership of the painting, appraised at $22,000, are to send the judge a written pleading later in April. He will then decide who the owner is.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Photo: The Potomack Company