In 2015, former collector and part-time art sleuth Arthur Brand spectacularly recovered the steeds. They were up for sale, so Brand posed as a millionaire, Mr Moss, a Texan oil dealer that he based on Dallas television character J R Ewing. While the middleman for the sale stalled, Brand and police followed other leads, eventually locating the horses in Bad Dürkheim in a raid that resulted in a further 30 artworks being seized.

Now read about the treasures Nazis stole that are sitting in plain sight

Stolen art masterpieces and treasures that were returned (copy)