A Vincent Van Gogh painting stolen from a small Dutch museum in 2020 during the lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic has been found, the institute that owns the work of art announced today.

“We have extremely good news. The painting ‘The Garden at Nuenen’ (‘Lentetuin’ or ‘Spring Garden’) has returned to the Groninger Museum 3.5 years after it was stolen,” the museum said in a statement.

The painting, which was created in 1884, was stolen from the museum Singer Lareneast of Amsterdam, where it had been transferred on loan for exhibition purposes.

The theft took place during weeks of worldwide lockdown amid the COVID pandemic.

At the time, Dutch police released security camera footage showing the moment thieves broke into the Singer Laren museum on March 30 by breaking through its glass doors to steal the painting.

The work depicts the parish garden of Nuenen, the small Dutch town where Van Gogh’s parents lived.

“The painting has suffered but – at first glance – it is in good condition,” announced the museum Groninger and added that the work is now in the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam and it will be weeks or months before it is returned.

“The police were involved in all phases (of locating the painting). The museum cannot comment on the ongoing investigation,” he added.

The museum also pointed out that Arthur Brandt, a prominent Dutch art detective, played an important role in the whole process.