Kherson Museum finds five more paintings stolen by Russian army

The museum announced this on Facebook.

Staff members of the Kherson Art Museum examined a photo fragment that showed a list of stolen artworks. This photo, taken at the Central Museum of Tavrida, was captured during the signing of a fake agreement regarding the storage of stolen property in Crimea. The image also included a fragment of paper with inventory numbers.

"The Crimean Museum staff recorded the inventory numbers of works stored on specific shelves. Using this list, we had previously identified a dozen graphic works, and now we are adding five etchings by Kherson artist Yuriy Didenko to that list," said representatives of the Kherson Museum.

The following works by artist Yuriy Didenko have been identified:

1. Visits (1978, paper, color etching)

2. Ivan Kupala Night (1987, paper, color etching)

3. The Witch from the series Tales about Ukrainian Devils (1987, paper, color etching)

4. Cat with arms from the series Tales about Ukrainian Devils (1987, paper, color etching)

5. Delusions from the series Tales about Ukrainian Devils (1987, paper, color etching)

As an illustrator, Yuriy Didenko studied Ukrainian folklore and traditional beliefs in depth. These studies inspired the subjects of his works, especially those in the Tales about Ukrainian Devils series.

So far, 120 artworks stolen by the occupying Russian army from the Kherson Art Museum in 2022 have been identified. Overall, more than 10,000 museum items have been illegally exported.

Currently, 119 of these works are located at the Central Museum of Tavrida in occupied Crimea. The whereabouts of one more piece are unknown, but Russian forces have confirmed that this artwork is in their possession.