Stolen paintings found

By Anastasia Tomazhenkova: Swiss police has found two Impressionist paintings stolen in one of Europe's largest art thefts. The paintings were found in an abandoned car near Zurich mental hospital.

Photo: Stolen paintings found

The pictures, by Vincent van Gogh and Claude Monet, were among four paintings worth 180 million Swiss francs (163 million dollars) that were stolen from a private museum in a February 10 armed robbery.

The two other paintings taken from the E.G. Buehrle Collection - by Edgar Degas and Paul Cezanne - remain missing.

The two recovered paintings - Monet's "Poppy field at Vetheuil" and van Gogh's "Blooming Chestnut Branches" - were in good condition and still under the glass behind which they were displayed in the museum.

The pictures were identified by museum director Lukas Gloor after a thorough inspection.

The paintings were discovered in a parking lot in front of a Zurich mental hospital on Monday. Police reported that it was unknown how long the white sedan had been there.