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An eighteenth century painting by an unknown artist was stolen from a church in central Bogota.
The art work, called “The Martyrdom of Saint Simon the Apostle,” was stolen from Bogota’s San Francisco Church on May 10.
However its theft was not reported by the church’s rector until a few days ago, a representative from the Culture Ministry explained to Caracol Radio.
The work is a 94.6 by 79 centimeter oil painting.
The Culture Ministry sent out an alert to Colombian authorities to watch out for its possible illegal exportation or sale.
The Ministry commented that the illegal trafficking of cultural works is the fourth biggest global smuggling problem after drugs, arms and protected animal species.
