Hoard of paintings found in Austria, works may have been looted by Nazis

Collection includes works by Monet, Renoir and Picasso; owner German recluse with previous stash found in Munich.

By REUTERS
VIENNA - More than 60 works of art have been found in Austria belonging to a German recluse, media reported, whose collection may include works looted by the Nazis.
The Austria Press Agency quoted on Tuesday a spokesman for Cornelius Gurlitt as saying the paintings - including works by Monet, Renoir and Picasso - were discovered at Gurlitt's house in Salzburg.
Last year German authorities found more than 1,400 paintings, drawings and sculptures with a total estimated value of 1 billion euros ($1.35 billion) in Gurlitt's Munich flat.
Most were believed to have been looted or extorted by the Nazis.
APA said Gurlitt's attorney, Christoph Edel, had ordered the Austrian works to be secured to guard them from theft. At Gurlitt's request, they had also been checked by experts to see if they might have been looted.
"Initial estimates based on a first review did not harden such a suspicion," it quoted him as saying.
Gurlitt had moved freely for decades between Germany, Austria and Switzerland to sell pieces from his collection.
A spokesman for the lawyer was not immediately available for comment when contacted by Reuters.
(Reporting by Michael Shields; Editing by John Stonestreet)