Masterpiece Once Recovered at Bus Stop May Fetch $32M

It's been the target of two high-profile lootings in its long history, but a painting regarded as a masterpiece by the Venetian artist Titian will change hands more properly next month. Christie's will auction The Rest on the Flight to Egypt on July 2 in London, and it estimates the work will fetch between $19 million and $32 million, reports CNN. The artist—real name Tiziano Vecellio—painted it in the early 16th century, depicting the biblical scene of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph en route to Egypt. In Titian's image, they are resting on the way.

The Guardian notes that Napoleon's troops stole the painting in 1809 from Vienna. Modern-day art thieves nabbed it again in 1995 from Longleat House, seat of the Marquesses of Bath, in Wiltshire, England. It remained missing for seven years, at which point renowned art detective Charles Hill recovered it at a London bus stop in a plastic shopping bag. (The Guardian also has an older story on that.) "Like its subjects, The Rest on the Flight into Egypt has been on a long and eventful journey—a journey that's far from over," reads a release at Christie's. (More art auction stories.)