French Museum 'disaster' as gallery dedicated to Etienne Terrus discovers half its art collection is fake
A French museum dedicated to the works of painter Etienne Terrus has discovered a significant number of paintings thought to be his were fakes. The Terrus museum in Elne, in the south of France, discovered 82 works from its collection had been incorrectly attributed to the artist.
According to the BBC, more than half of the collection was fake - dwindling in value from their original prince of £140,000.
Staff at the museum said they were not aware of the forgeries until a visiting art historian informed them.
The collection of paintings, drawings and watercolours was built over a two-decade period. The shocking news announced on Friday as the museum opened following a renovation.
In an interview on Friday, Yves Bariol, mayor of the Pyrenees town, called the situation "a disaster" and apologised to those who had previously visited the museum. Local police are investigating the case, which they say could affect other regional artists.
Terrus was born in 1857 and died in 1922 in Elne. He was a close friend of the painter Henri Matisse.