More than 60 additional pieces of art – including works by Picasso, Renoir and Monet – have been discovered in the Austrian home of a reclusive elderly German art collector who was revealed last year to be in possession of hundreds of paintings thought to have been stolen by the Nazis.
A spokesman for Cornelius Gurlitt said the works of art had been discovered in the collector's Salzburg home and were currently being examined by experts to determine whether any of them were looted by the Nazis.
He said after a first inspection that there was no indication that any of the newly-discovered works were plundered by the Nazis – either by being stolen from their Jewish owners or bought from them cheaply under duress.
"At the request of Cornelius Gurlitt, the works are being examined by experts on whether they include possibly stolen art," the statement said. "A preliminary assessment based on an initial screening did not substantiate such a suspicion."
The Gurlitt case first made headlines late last year when it emerged investigators had found 1,400 artworks in his Munich flat, including long-lost works by masters also including Matisse and Chagall.
Gurlitt, 81, is the son of Hildebrand Gurlitt, described by Der Spiegel as an "art dealer to the Führer", who acquired the paintings in the 1930s and 1940s and who worked for the Nazis, selling stolen works and art the regime said was degenerate.
The German authorities have been criticised for dragging their feet on the case. Although the works were discovered in early 2012, the spectacular find only became known to the public late last year through a news magazine report.
According to the dpa news agency, the latest discovery came to light after Gurlitt's caretaker ordered the works top be stored securely as a precaution against break-ins and theft.
Gurlitt's spokesman said that "more works were located in Cornelius Gurlitt's house in Salzburg … There are more than 60 works, including Monet, Renoir and Picasso.".
Berlin said last month it would boost funding for efforts to return Nazi-looted art to its rightful owners and would make efforts to invite Jewish representatives to join a mediation body.
