The daughter of a former Nazi official has turned in a painting stolen over 80 years ago from a Jewish art dealer in Amsterdam, just over a week after journalists spotted it in a real estate listing in the Argentine seaside city of Mar del Plata.

The painting was handed over by a lawyer representing Patricia Kadgien, the official’s daughter, on Wednesday at 2:00 p.m, the Herald has learned. She and her husband have been under house arrest since Tuesday on suspicion of hiding the artwork.

The couple lives in a house in Mar del Plata. Authorities raided the property twice, but did not find the artwork there.

“Portrait of a Lady” is a long-lost painting by Italian artist Giuseppe Ghislandi. It was taken by the Nazis from its original Amsterdam-based owner, art dealer Jacques Goudstikker, during World War II. The painting’s last known whereabouts were in Switzerland in 1946 in the hands of high-ranking Nazi official Friedrich Kadgien, who fled Germany and ultimately settled in Argentina.

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A group of Dutch journalists, who had been trying to contact the Kadgiens for years in search of the painting, stumbled upon a photo of what appears to be the original “Portrait of a Lady” hanging in the living room of one of the family’s properties, listed on a realtor’s website. The photo has since been taken down.

Kadgien’s family is now being investigated after apparently attempting to hide the painting. When investigators arrived at the property, a horse tapestry had been hung in the place where the painting appeared in the image, but there were marks on the walls and a hook that could have been used to hang a painting.

Police carried out four simultaneous raids in Mar del Plata on Monday. One was at the house where Kadgien’s daughter and her husband live. The couple were placed under house arrest for 72 hours, waiting for a hearing. 

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“So far, the painting we are looking for has not been located, nor delivered at court,” read a statement on the General Prosecutors’ Office website. Prosecutor Carlos Martínez had requested the arrests and raids during a hearing with Judge Santiago Inchausti.

The painting was handed over after Patricia Kadgien attempted to transfer the judicial investigation to civil court, local media reported. The Herald contacted the law firm representing her, but they chose not to comment.

During the operation, investigators seized two paintings which, according to visual arts experts, could date from the 1800s. Several drawings and engravings were also found. These works will be analysed to determine whether they are connected to pieces stolen during the Second World War.

Other measures have also been ordered, but they are subject to a 48-hour confidentiality order.