It concerns the drawing “Three characters” from 1966. The customs authorities found the work of art on 5 July in the possession of a traveler who came from Switzerland and tried to bring it into Spain without declaring it.
Tipped by Swiss colleagues about a “work” being transported in “suspicious” circumstances, the man told Spanish customs that it was simply a copy. He waved an invoice of 1,500 Swiss francs (1,515 euros). But at the bottom of the suitcase was a second invoice, good for 450,000 Swiss francs (454,000 euros). That invoice came from an art gallery in Zurich and referred to Picasso’s “Three Characters” drawing.
According to an initial assessment, this concerns the original work and the price invoiced by the gallery is in accordance with the market price. There is now even more exhaustive expertise.