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Security system at Tretyakov Gallery may be improved, Kremlin spokesman says

There is no doubt that some conclusions will be drawn following the incident, Peskov pointed out

© Mikhail Japaridze/TASS

MOSCOW, January 28. /TASS/. The State Tretyakov Gallery’s security system may be improved following the theft of a painting by Arkhip Kuindzhi, Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

"Facilities such as the Tretyakov Gallery are properly protected, their security is guaranteed because they store works of art and masterpieces that have no price tag, they are priceless," he said in response to questions. According to Peskov, "this is why it is too early to say that anything is wrong."

"It is too early to draw any far-reaching conclusions [concerning the Tretyakov Gallery’s flawed security system] and summarize the situation," the Kremlin spokesman noted. "However, the situation should clearly result in some action," he said. "There is no doubt that some conclusions will be drawn concerning the need to make some improvements," he added.

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"Thank God, law enforcers did a good job and quickly recovered the painting," Peskov went on to say. At the same time, he pointed out that "such incidents occur in all countries and it does not happen every time that a stolen work of art is found so quickly."

The painting titled "Ai-Petri. Crimea" by Arkhip Kuindzhi was stolen from the gallery on January 27. On Monday morning, news came that it had been recovered. The painting comes from the collection of the Russian Museum in St. Petersburg and was brought to Moscow for an exhibition of Kuindzhi’s masterpieces. The 39 by 53 cm painting in oil on canvas and paper dates back to the 1890s.

Security measures at the State Tretyakov Gallery were stepped up following the incident. Head of the Russian Culture Ministry’s Museum Department Vladislav Kononov said there were plans to install digital sensors on all paintings in the gallery.

Kuindzhi’s painting is the second work of art that disappeared from a Moscow museum in the past week. Earlier reports said that a 16th-century icon was missing from Moscow’s State Historical Museum.

The theft is the second major incident occurring at the Tretyakov Gallery in the past eight months. In May 2018, a man damaged Ilya Repin’s masterpiece titled "Ivan the Terrible and His Son Ivan on November 16, 1581." The picture is still being restored.

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