Stolen Munch Paintings Recovered

Three stolen works of art by Edvard Munch were recovered Monday, police said, less than 24 hours after thieves pried them loose from the walls of an upscale restaurant in the second theft of the Norwegian master's work in less than seven months.

Iver Stensrud, of the Oslo police, also said several arrests had been made. He declined to be more specific or say what condition the stolen watercolor and two lithographs were in.

A 1915 watercolor called "Blue Dress" and two lithographs were stolen from the walls of the restaurant of the stately Refnes Hotel near the city of Moss, about 30 miles south of Oslo, late Sunday, Jan Pedersen, of the local police, said by telephone.

Pedersen said he could not estimate the value of the works.

Munch expert and auctioneer Knut Forsberg estimated the paintings' collective value at more than $257,000, with "Blue Dress" being the most valuable because it is unique.

"It's a big deal in Norway, but it's not exactly a world sensation," Forsberg said.

Pedersen said a hotel worker went into the restaurant at about 11 p.m. Sunday night and surprised two people who had removed the pictures from the wall.

"They dropped one, and broke the frame and glass, but took the picture," Pedersen said.

The suspects were described as being in their 20s, of medium height and having dark hair.

It was the second such theft of Munch paintings in the Nordic country in less than seven months.

In August, the artist's masterpieces, "The Scream" and "Madonna," were stolen in a brazen daylight raid from an Oslo museum by three armed robbers and have yet to be recovered.

"There are no grounds for assuming any connection between the thefts, but we will be talking to the Oslo police about it," Pedersen said.

Munch developed an emotionally charged painting style that was of great importance in the birth of the 20th-century Expressionist movement. He died in 1944 at the age of 80.

The hotel's owner, Widar Salbuvik, said the works were part of a 400-piece collection, including another four by Munch, displayed in the restaurant. The hotel itself is part of an estate that was built in 1767.

The hotel is on the island of Jeloey, where Munch lived and worked from 1913 until 1916, when he moved to Oslo.

He said the works are not as famous as "The Scream" or "Madonna," but he added that they were well-known to collectors and Munch aficionados.

The hotel has an alarm system, but it was not turned on since the hotel had not yet closed for the night.

"It seems to be a fashion among criminals to steal Munch," Salbuvik told state radio NRK. "How professional is it to steal art? Great value, big risk and hard to sell. They would have to be very slow in the head to do it."

In 1994, another version of "The Scream" was stolen from the National Gallery in Oslo and was recovered a few months later in a sting operation.