Thieves have ruined a historic painting – by smashing through it as they raided a north-east restaurant.
The Kelpie Cafe at Banff Castle, which is used to help people with disabilities learn about the catering industry, was targeted on Thursday night.
The culprits broke through a window, ripping through an artwork created 45 years ago by a local teacher.
The work – depicting the hanging of James Macpherson, a freebooter executed in Banff in 1700 – was only returned to the town four years ago after vanishing in mysterious circumstances.
Last night, the break-in – and destruction of the painting – was described as “sickening”.
Mark McDermott, the day service manager at the cafe, said: “The thieves have smashed through the double glazing glass and kicked through the painting to get into the cafe.
“Everyone is very upset and they are working hard to clean up the mess so we can open next week and make sure the cafe is safe for everybody to use.
“We are hoping somebody who has any information about this will be in contact and we can find the perpetrators.”
The artwork had been on loan to the cafe from local businessman John Milne, who brought it back to the town after it vanished.
Mr McDermott added: “The painting was done by a local art teacher in 1973 and it hung in a pub in Banff for many years.
“It was lost and disappeared and John saw an article about the painting and bought it to return it to Banff.
“The people that appear in the painting are all local people who lived in the area.
“It’s about Macpherson’s hanging and it has strong historical links to the town of Banff and a lot of teacher’s pupils are featured in it.
“It has got a huge historical context and a lot of sentimental value.”
Mr Milne, from Whitehills, bought the work for £2,000 for the benefit of the community and said he was “sickened” at the incident.
He said: “It would be a shame to get something like that and then hide it away – it should be shown, and that is why it was put in the Kelpie Cafe.
“I’m absolutely gutted because I did it for the community. This wasn’t a selfish thing for me to keep the painting. It was done for the community and for my grandchildren.
“I just can’t believe somebody would so silly because there is nothing worth stealing in the cafe. I feel sickened by the whole thing.”
The thieves made off with a set of keys and empty money bags.
Anyone with information should contact the police on 101.
