FBI recovers Rockwell painting stolen in New Jersey in 1976

PHILADELPHIA – The FBI has recovered a 1919 Norman Rockwell painting stolen more than 40 years ago from a New Jersey home.

The painting, sometimes called “Lazybones” or “Boy Asleep with Hoe,” graced the cover of the Sept. 6, 1919, edition of the Saturday Evening Post. The oil-on-canvas piece was among several items taken during a 1976 break-in in Cherry Hill, a Philadelphia suburb.

Susan Murta tells The Philadelphia Inquirer (http://bit.ly/2nONreH ) she last saw the painting in her parents’ home in 1976.

An Inquirer story last year said the owner bought the painting for $75 after accidentally damaging it with a pool cue in 1954. It’s now believed to be worth more than $1 million.

It’s unclear how the painting was recovered. The FBI has scheduled a news conference for Friday.

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Information from: The Philadelphia Inquirer, http://www.inquirer.com