[MSN] Australia has returned a precious map that was stolen from the Spanish National Library last year, concluding what has been described as a very unhappy case.

[MSN]

Map treasure returned

Australia has returned a precious map that was stolen from the Spanish
National Library last year, concluding what has been described as "a very
unhappy case".
The map was taken from a rare edition of an atlas prepared by fifteenth
century cartographers using the calculations of Ptolemy, a second century
Greek astronomer and geographer.

The 1482 edition of the Cosmographia atlas, featuring the addition of
Scandinavia, was printed in Germany.
In August last year thieves stole two maps from that edition as well as a
number of other rare documents. Two months later they pitched up in a Sydney
art gallery where they were seized by police. It is thought they arrived
there after passing through the hands of dealers in Buenos Aires, London and
New York.
A Uruguayan-born researcher is currently being held in Argentina after being
charged over the maps' theft.
The 562-year-old map's return was described as a great moment for Spain and
Spanish heritage by the Spanish National Library's director who said the
Cosmographica has been an integral part of the collection since the
institution's foundation some 300 years ago.