A painting stolen from the Signet Library during a talk on the Reformation, attended by 200 of Edinburgh’s great and good, has mysteriously reappeared.
The picture, I Canne Hear Ye, by Borders artist Tom Scott, was found by a member of staff hanging unwrapped on a gate in the railings outside the library at around 8.15am today.
Robert Pirrie, chief executive of the Society of Writers to Her Majesty’s Signet (WS Society), which owns the library, said: “We are very relieved and pleased that it is back, if mystified.
“As to who took it, we are in the realms of speculation. It may be that as a result of the publicity whoever took it realised that it was going to be very difficult to dispose of it.
“We can only be grateful that they did return it responsibly rather than dispose of it by some other means.”
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He added: “We will display it again, but we will be thinking very carefully about what further security measures we may wish to take.”
The watercolour, which is valued at between £2,500 and £4,000, is believed to have been taken from the Signet Library on January 1, when it was opened for a discussion on John Knox and the Reformation, by a panel that included the Most Reverend Richard Holloway, the former primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church, and attended by around 200 people.
A police spokesman said: “Obviously, we are delighted for the library that the painting has been returned. Nevertheless, we still must establish whether any criminality was involved when the painting was taken.
“Anyone with information that can assist with our enquiries should contact police immediately.”