A Norman Rockwell painting stolen more than 40 years ago was returned Friday to the family who owns it.
The painting, “Boy Asleep With Hoe,” also known as “Taking a Break,” and “Lazybones,” appeared on a 1919 cover of The Saturday Evening Post and represents the American artist’s early work.
The illustration of a cherub-faced boy, sleeping gape-mouthed with a puppy lying with its head in his lap and a garden tool leaning against a tree, was one of the first of 323 covers that the artist created for the magazine.
The painting came home with family patriarch Robert Grant a day after he played pool and knocked a hole in the canvas. He broke it and bought it for about $50.
There was not much of a market for the artist's original work at the time. Now the painting is valued, even with the tear, at close to $1 million, according to The New York Times.
"Back in the day, this wasn't a big thing," Lizbeth Schleinkofer, one of Grant's children, told The Times. "He just liked it."
The painting was the backdrop of many photos when it hung in the Grants’ family room, and when they moved, it was placed prominently in the entryway, the first thing noticed when they walked into their Cherry Hill, New Jersey, home.
Thieves noticed it, too. The family returned from vacation and found the home ransacked. A silver coin collection, a television and the Rockwell painting were stolen.
The case had gone cold after decades. However a few years after his father died, John Grant came across an old folder with a photo of the magazine cover. It took a of couple years, but he was able to renew interest in the case.
On the 40th anniversary of the crime, the FBI sent out a news release about the painting. Agents fielded a call from an antique shop owner, who wanted to remain anonymous, who thought the cover was hanging on the shop’s wall.
It was.
"This individual is not believed to have been involved in the painting's theft and is not expected to face any charges," the FBI said.
The family had not seen the painting until it was delivered to them by agents Friday.
“It’s unbelievable,” Grant told The Times. “The dream came true, and my dad would be so happy.”
After all this time, the painting will not hang in a house. The six Grant children do not know what to do with it, according to CNN, so they are putting it in storage.
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