Art: Restored

For 15 days in a room on the second floor of the Louvre Museum in Paris a young Russian artist named Serge Bogousslavsky sketched industriously while guards wandered about the halls. Each day, unnoticed, he frayed and broke one strand of the wire upholding a tiny masterpiece—valued from $80,000 up—by Antoine Watteau: L' Indifférent. On the 18th day after lunch a guard walked into the room and stared (TIME, June 26). L'Indifférent and Russian were both gone.

One day this week, Serge Bogousslavsky, guarded by two lawyers, marched into a police station, unwrapped newspapers from a bundle under his arm, surrendered the painting. Officials pronounced it the original but awaited the return of experts from their Assumption Day holiday for a final opinion.

To his garret, Bogousslavsky explained, he had taken the painting, had diligently spent his time removing "tar" from it and retouching faded colors. Said he, "I have always loved Watteau. I could not bear to see it in the Louvre in such condition."