The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam has welcomed home two paintings by the Dutch master, more than 14 years after they were ripped (扯) off the museum’s wall in a nighttime theft. Museum director Axel Rueger called their return “one of the most special days in the history of the museum”. The paintings were discovered last year by Italian police while they were searching an Italian criminals’ farmhouse near Naples for evidence of drug dealing. They were in a box and hidden behind a wall in a toilet when they were found.

The paintings were considered among the artworks most searched for in the world. After years in darkness, they can now shine again. They are back on display at the museum before being taken to the conservation studio for repair. Fortunately, they suffered surprisingly little damage as thieves who had climbed up a ladder and broken a window to get into the museum in 2004 ripped them out of their frames.

“It is not only a surprise that the works have been recovered but it’s even more surprising they are in relatively unharmed condition,” Rueger said.

The museum director was on vacation when the call came last year from Italian authorities who believed they had recovered the paintings. He didn’t celebrate right away. He’d had calls like this before.

“I was hopeful but also a little hesitant. Over these years, we had so many occasions when people phoned us, contacted us, claiming that they knew something about the whereabouts (下落) of the works and each time it was false, the trace went cold,” he said. “So… the way has been full of disappointment.” But museum experts sent to Italy to check the authenticity (真实性) of the works quickly turned Ruegers doubts into delight.

Rueger said the paintings are now back at the museum, which is home to dozens of works by Van Gogh. “I’m very confident that everything is safe in the museum from now on,” he said.

【小题1】How were the stolen paintings found?

A．The police found them by accident.	B．The arrested thieves gave information.
C．Some drug dealers offered clues.	D．The police knew the hidden place.

【小题2】What surprised Rueger most about the lost paintings?

A．They were stolen at night.	B．They were found at last.
C．They suffered little damage.	D．The search took 14 years.

【小题3】When Rueger got the call, he ________.

A．didn’t believe it at all	B．felt quite satisfied
C．planned to celebrate	D．doubted the news

【小题4】What does the underlined part in Paragraph 6 probably mean?

A．Rueger gradually lost interest in the search.

B．The number of false calls was greatly reduced.

C．Rueger felt cold because of too many false calls.

D．The chance to find the paintings became small.

短文改错
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