Two Eastman Johnson Paintings Stolen in 1970s Recovered and Returned to Owners
Nearly 50 years after their theft in New York City, two oil paintings by American genre artist Eastman Johnson (1824–1906)—The Young Mother (c. 1873) and Mary and Her Lamb (1877)—have been recovered. Art dealer Brandon Levine discovered the works in a private estate collection and reached out to Shannon’s Fine Art Auctioneers. Owner Sandra Germain verified that they had been stolen in 1978. The Young Mother was taken on May 6, 1978, from Hirschl & Adler Galleries, while Mary and Her Lamb was stolen on April 27, 1978, from the Kenneth Lux Gallery. The return of the paintings involved locating Kenneth Lux's descendants, with experts valuing them at $200,000.
Key facts
- Two Eastman Johnson oil paintings stolen in 1978 were recovered nearly 50 years later.
- The Young Mother (around 1873) was stolen on 6 May 1978 from Hirschl & Adler Galleries.
- Mary and Her Lamb (1877) was reported missing on 27 April 1978 from the since-closed Kenneth Lux Gallery.
- Art dealer Brandon Levine spotted the works in a private estate collection and contacted Shannon’s Fine Art Auctioneers.
- Shannon’s owner Sandra Germain confirmed the thefts and coordinated the return to the rightful owners.
- The recovery was aided by Johnson’s catalogue raisonné and the Art Loss Register.
- Experts at Shannon’s estimate the two works could be worth a total of $200,000.
- Johnson was a founding trustee of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1870.
Entities
Artists
- Eastman Johnson
- Patricia Hills
- Abigael MacGibeny
- Winslow Homer
- Ethel Johnson
- Kenneth Lux
- James Ratcliffe
- Elizabeth Feld
- Brandon Levine
- Sandra Germain
- Stuart Feld
- Daniel Lux
Institutions
- Shannon’s Fine Art Auctioneers
- Hirschl & Adler Galleries
- Kenneth Lux Gallery
- Metropolitan Museum of Art
- Art Loss Register
- The Art Newspaper
- Shannon's Fine Art Auctioneers
- Bonhams
- Tweed Museum of Art
- Colby Museum of Art
- Eastman Johnson Catalogue Raisonné
Locations
- New York City
- United States
- Long Island
- Connecticut
- Maine
- Europe
- New York
- New England
- Lake Superior
- Milford