When the Nazis occupied Poland in World War II, many of the country's priceless works of art were stolen.
One of them is "The Virgin and Child", a painting from the 16th century attributed to the Italian painter Alessandro Turci.
The Nazi official who organized the art heist put the painting on a list of hundreds of works of art taken from occupied Poland.
But the painting is finally coming home, having been discovered in Japan and handed over to Polish authorities during a ceremony in Tokyo this week.
It is one of 600 looted works of art successfully brought home by Poland, but more than 66.000 so-called war losses have yet to be found.
Poland recently launched a campaign seeking the return of hundreds of thousands of works of art and other cultural artifacts that remain missing after the German and Soviet occupation in World War II.
He is also seeking 1,3 billion dollars in damages for the destruction of the Nazi occupier.
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Experts believe that over time, more artworks will be discovered as the heirs of looted works of art try to sell them, unaware of their origins.
It is believed that the "Virgin and Child" was transferred to Germany in 1940 during the Nazi occupation of Poland.
The Nazis often looted art belonging to Jewish families before killing them.
The painting was on a list of 521 works of art from occupied Poland compiled by Kajetan Mulman, the Nazi official in charge of art looting.
The painting reappeared in the XNUMXs, when it was sold at a New York auction.
It was supposed to be up for another auction in January last year, but the sale was halted when the work was spotted by Polish authorities.
Once it was proven that it was a stolen painting, the auction house and the owner of the painting agreed that it should be returned to Poland.
The official handover ceremony took place in Tokyo on Wednesday.
'By returning works of art, we are reminded of our heritage'
Natalija Cetera, a Polish art historian, said the return of masterpieces such as "The Virgin and Child" helps restore pride in the country's cultural heritage.
Works of art by Rembrandt and Raphael were stolen from Poland, just like internationally recognized Polish masterpieces, she added.
"And that's why every time this situation occurs, that works of art are returned to Polish collections, you feel proud because the importance of Polish collections is highlighted, which is sometimes forgotten.
"It means we have a good reason to remember our heritage, our collection and the strength we had in art, because we tried to rebuild it after the war, and it's a long process to be recognized again in that way," Cetera told the BBC. .
She believes that in recent years there has been a change in the perception of cultural heritage as a "common good".
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Christopher Marinello, founder of the International Organization for the Return of Art, has spent more than 30 years finding missing masterpieces.
He believes that more works will begin to surface as looted works of art are passed on to the next generation, and the new heirs are unaware of their origins.
"In the meantime, a whole generation has passed and now these looted items end up in the hands of their heirs when the owners die and their children don't necessarily know the history and decide to sell them," says Marinello.
Polish authorities recorded the stolen works of art in Interpol databases, as well as in private and government databases.
"There are also a large number of art historians who research looted works of art from Poland, so they also recognize them.
"The more technology advances, and the more auction houses put everything online, the more eyes there are for looted items," he adds.
Marinello believes that there has also been a "generational change" in the attitude towards stolen masterpieces.
He is currently working on a case in which a man from Chicago contacted him about a piece of art he believes his grandfather stole from a German museum in World War II.
"They've had it for a generation and now they realize they can't sell it and they'd rather get it back than continue to have problems with the issue."
But laws vary from country to country and sometimes a stolen work can only be returned with the goodwill of the current owner.
Japan, where the "Virgin and Child" was found, "is not an ideal country for the return of stolen art," says Marinello.
"It's really up to the owner in most cases to do the right thing ... to realize that something has been looted or stolen and now it has to be returned, because you can't rely on a lawsuit under Japanese law," he says.
Cetera claims that the successful return of "The Virgin and Child" is a reason for pride, but she is not sure that the passion for returning stolen works of art to Poland will continue with future generations.
"The question is, does it matter to the next generation - generation Z and younger generations, do they really care? Based on what I'm seeing, it doesn't seem like it," she says.
Digitized art collections could mean people start to lose interest in the physical form, she says.
"At some point we may not have to return the artworks... because we'll have them all in the Cloud and we'll be able to get them anywhere at any time, regardless of who currently owns them.
"This digitization and the technology that is coming could at some point suppress the need to return works of art in physical form," believes this art historian.
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