Three books stolen from the archives of the Budapest Opera House in 2015 have been recovered in London and returned to Hungary, a government official said on Thursday.
The three volumes were published in the 17th century and have a combined market value of about 40 million forints (EUR 112,000), Tamás Menczer, a state secretary of the foreign ministry, said on Facebook.
The books were recovered in a London antique book shop, where the owner recognised the Budapest Opera’s seal and notified the police, he said.
“Erb-Huldigung”, “Effigies Ducum et Regum Hungariae” and “Les Peuples de la Russie” arrived in Hugary shortly before the borders were closed due to the novel coronavirus epidemic, and will be sent back to the Opera’s archives soon, Menczer said.