Titian masterpiece returned to owner

A Titian painting stolen from a flamboyant aristocrat has been returned after a search lasting seven years, it was announced last night.

The 500-year-old work, Rest on the Flight to Egypt, which was taken from the home of the Marquess of Bath at Longleat in Wiltshire, was found in a plastic bag in London without its frame but otherwise intact.

The peer had gone to extraordinary lengths to recover the painting, including employing a convicted art thief, placing an advertisement in the classified listings magazine Exchange & Mart and offering a reward of £100,000. The measures were suggested by Charles Hill, a former head of Scotland Yard's arts and antiques squad, who was appointed to track down the missing work, worth at least £7m.

It is believed to have been recovered through a lead obtained by Mr Hill, although full details of the operation were not being made public.

Lord Bath, who is on holiday in France, said he was waiting to see the condition of the work before celebrating.

The 28-inch by 18-inch painting, bought by the 4th Marquess of Bath in 1878, was taken in 1995 by burglars. The painting will undergo conservation work before it is returned to display at Longleat.