Van Gogh painting stolen from Dutch museum

A Van Gogh painting was stolen overnight by thieves from the Singer Laren Museum in the Netherlands, its director said on Monday (March 30).

The painting known as "Spring Garden," dates back to 1884 and depicts a woman standing near sparse red-flowered bushes with the church building in the background.

The gallery, in the town of Laren, to the east of Amsterdam is currently shut to the public under government orders.

Police said the thieves had forced the building's glass front doors open at around 3am local time.

The painting was on loan to the gallery from the Groninger Museum, also in the Netherlands.