Étienne Terrus was a friend of Henri Matisse, and the museum devoted to his works had gotten the help of the town of Elne to buy many works over two decades. Then an art historian came to town – and alerted the museum staff to the fakes. “In interviews on Friday, the mayor of the Pyrenees town, Yves Barniol, said the situation was ‘a disaster’ and apologised to those who had visited the museum in good faith.”