TOKUSHIMA — The Tokushima Prefectural Government announced on Nov. 19 that it has returned a painting that turned out to be a forgery and received a refund of 67.2 million yen (about $426,000) from an Osaka-based company.
The painting was part of the collection of the Tokushima Modern Art Museum in the city of Tokushima. According to the museum, the returned work is the oil painting “At the Cycle-Race Track,” 55 centimeters tall and 46 cm wide, which is originally believed to have been created by French Cubist painter Jean Metzinger (1883-1956) between 1911 and 1912.
The prefecture-run museum purchased the work in January 1999 from an Osaka art dealer for 67.2 million yen. However, outside parties indicated concerns in 2024, and after a thorough examination, it was determined that it was a forgery by Wolfgang Beltracchi, a German known as a “genius forger” who was sentenced to prison for forgery in 2011.
An investigation conducted by the museum from July to October this year, with assistance from the Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties, detected synthetic pigments made practical only after the mid-20th century, inconsistent with the work’s origin in the early 20th century.
After discussions with the company that supplied the painting, both parties agreed on Oct. 20 to a refund and a return of the painting. The company also believed it was genuine at the time of delivery, so the purchase contract was deemed valid, and the refund amount was set at the original purchase price. The refund was made to the prefectural government on Oct. 22, and the painting was returned by the prefecture on Nov. 18.
According to the prefectural government’s property management division, “At the Cycle-Race Track” is recorded at its acquisition price in the prefecture’s fixed asset ledger and is also listed in the prefecture’s inventory ledger. With the ownership of the painting transferred away from the prefecture, procedures to remove it from these ledgers are expected to take place.
After the forgery was confirmed, the museum displayed “At the Cycle-Race Track” in May and June this year alongside two panels explaining the circumstances under which it was deemed authentic at the time of purchase.
(Japanese original by Koichi Uematsu, Tokushima Bureau)