Pablo Picasso sculpture rediscovered in Rome - 31/12/2009

A sculpture of a guitar made by revered artist Pablo Picasso has been found in a shoe box in an Italian apartment.

The piece of modern art had been stolen by an Italian businessman several years ago and it took police some time to track down the artefact.

Picasso gave the yellow and black sculpture to Italian artist Giuseppe Vittorio Parisi as a gift, ANSA reports.

However, Parisi was convinced to hand it over to an unscrupulous third party who promised to put it in a special glass case to protect it.

That was the last time that the guitar was seen until it was this week discovered in Pomezia.

According to the Italian news agency, a man has been arrested in connection with the artwork's disappearance.

The guitar will now be housed at a contemporary art museum in Maccagno, northern Italy.

Picasso is widely regarded as one of the most important artists of the 20th century and his cubist works can be seen to have directly influenced a number of modern painters.