Stolen from a Belluno museum in 1973, Antonio Solario’s Madonna and Child has resurfaced decades later in a British manor. Thanks to the efforts of art lawyer Christopher Marinello, the painting has now been returned to its rightful home in Belluno.
This 16th-century work, missing for nearly half a century, was discovered in the private collection of Barbara de Dozsa in Norfolk, England. Despite being listed by Interpol and the Italian Carabinieri as one of the most wanted stolen artworks, efforts to reclaim it stalled for years due to De Dozsa’s persistent claims of legal ownership.
The painting was originally acquired in 1973 by Baron de Dozsa, Barbara’s former husband, from an undisclosed source in Austria. It remained hidden in their Tudor manor in East Barsham until 2017, when it was submitted to a local auction house and identified by someone affiliated with the Belluno museum. Bureaucratic delays, including those caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, resulted in the painting being returned to De Dozsa in 2020.
Law or Conscience?
The painting’s return closes a decades-long chapter fraught with legal ambiguity and ethical debates. Art Recovery International’s founder, Christopher Marinello—whose family originates from the Belluno region—handled the case voluntarily and tirelessly campaigned for the work’s restitution.
Marinello highlighted the limitations of the UK’s Limitations Act, which allows a person to legally claim ownership of a stolen object after holding it “in good faith” for six years. “This painting could not be sold, exhibited, or moved without the risk of seizure,” Marinello said. “It could never truly be a free artwork.”
While the material value of Madonna and Child may be estimated at under £100,000, its cultural worth to the people of Belluno is immeasurable. As Belluno Mayor Oscar De Pellegrin put it, “Bringing this painting back to the city is like returning a piece of Belluno’s identity, history, and soul.”
In the end, Barbara de Dozsa chose a path of conscience. “At a time when many still cling to stolen art, her decision renewed my faith in humanity,” Marinello stated.
The return of Madonna and Child is not just the repatriation of a lost painting—it is a testament to the enduring power of cultural heritage and moral responsibility.
