O'Donoghue pays tribute as Lady Beit dies

The death has taken place of Lady Clementine Beit, one of Ireland's greatest benefactors, who lived between London and Russborough House, the Palladian mansion in Co Wicklow.

Lady Beit, who suffered a stroke while visiting family in London on Saturday, died early on Wednesday morning. Her death was confirmed by Patricia Oliver, secretary of the Beit foundation, who said funeral details would be announced in London, possibly later today.

The Beit foundation was set up by Sir Alfred and Lady Beit in 1976 to manage Russborough House and the couple's art collection, both of which were presented to the Irish nation in 1976. Some 17 of the collection's most valuable paintings, which survived up to three robberies at Russborough, were donated to the National Gallery of Ireland in 1987.

The exact value of the house and collection has never been fully publicised but individual paintings, including a Vermeer, a Goya and two Metsus, have been reported to be worth tens of millions of euro each.

The Beits came to prominence in 1974 when the first of three spectacular robberies took place at Russborough. In the first raid, a gang thought to have republican connections and including English heiress Dr Rose Dugdale, broke into Russborough, bound and gagged Sir Alfred and Lady Beit and made off with 19 paintings.

All the paintings were subsequently recovered in a cottage in Co Cork. Dugdale was sentenced to nine years in prison. Two years later Sir Alfred and his wife set up the Beit foundation to hold Russborough and the art collection in trust for the nation, but thieves struck again in 1986. This time the Beits were away and the criminal Martin Cahill, known as the General, and his accomplices stole 15 paintings, including a Vermeer, a Rubens, a Goya and two Metsus. As the paintings were recovered over the following years, the most significant were donated by the Beits to the National Gallery of Ireland.

Minister for Arts John O'Donoghue said last night he learned of the death of Lady Beit with great regret. He said with her passing the Irish art scene had lost a true friend, a generous benefactor, a renowned connoisseur and a patron of a symphony of art forms.

The Minister recalled in particular the extraordinarily munificent donation of many famous paintings in the Beit collection to the Irish nation by Sir Alfred and Lady Beit in 1987.