Two armed robbers entered the Munch Museum in Oslo, Norway, shortly after it opened in August 2004 and stole both paintings, valued at around £30m and £8m, respectively.

Head of the Norwegian police investigation, Iver Stensrud, said: “For two years and nine days we have been hunting systematically for these pictures and now we’ve found them.

“The damage to the paintings was much less than what one could have expected.”

Experts at the museum later confirmed that the recovered works are genuine, according to Norwegian news agency NTB.

The two thieves have not yet been traced and no new arrests have been made following the recovery of the art works.

Both paintings – which date from 1893 – are considered ’destination’ pieces of art, attracting visitors from around the world . The Scream portrays a terrified figure under a blood-red sky, while the Madonna depicts a bare-breasted woman with long black hair. Details: www.munch.museum.no

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