The masterpiece in question, attributed to Alessandro Turchi and titled Madonna with Child, depicts the Virgin Mary holding the infant Jesus in her arms.
Before World War II, it was part of a Polish collection.
The painting was stolen by the German occupying forces from the Lubomirski Palace in the southeastern Polish town of Przeworsk in 1940 and was missing for decades until it resurfaced at an auction in Tokyo last year.
The official hand-over ceremony was held at the weekend at the Royal Castle in Warsaw, where the painting will be showcased throughout July.
As Madonna With Child was a part of the art collection gathered by the Lubomirski aristocratic family, the painting will then go to the new Lubomirski Museum, which is under construction in the south-western city of Wrocław.
From March next year, the masterpiece is set to be exhibited at the city’s Ossoliński National Institute.
“This artwork holds not only great artistic but also symbolic value. As part of Henryk Lubomirski's esteemed collection, the painting returns to its rightful place in Poland, finding a new home at the Ossoliński Institute,” said the Institute’s director Łukasz Kamiński.
“I want to invite everybody to Wrocław in 2027 to visit the renovated Lubomirski Museum. Next March, you’ll be more than welcome to attend our jubilee exhibition, where both the permanent and commemorative displays will proudly showcase Madonna with Child,” the official added.
Click on the audio player above for a report by Radio Poland’s Michał Owczarek.
