A £30k sculpture stolen during a heist at a London manor house has been recovered 16 years on.  

Thieves made off with the 130-year-old Wally Bird during a 2007 break-in at Pitzhanger Manor House in Ealing.   

The sculpture was part of a £288k Martinware pottery collection targeted during two separate robberies two years apart.   

The Wally Bird sculpture vanished for more than a decade was thought to be gone - until it was recently spotted in an auction catalogue.  

Its return was then secured by an expert and the piece was given back to Ealing Council.   

Insurers Zurich Municipal had previously paid out over the Martinware thefts but, as a gesture of goodwill, did not ask for the money back.   

The Wally Bird is the third stolen item to be returned to the council in just two years.   

Dr Jonathan Oates, archivist for Ealing Council, said: "It is great that yet another Martinware piece has been restored to its rightful place."   

Reports said thieves broke into the manor house through a window at around 2.50am on Thursday, March 22, 2007.   

Twenty-two items, which had an estimated value of £240,000, were taken during the six-minute raid.   

Martinware from the same collection was previously taken from Southall Library in 2005.   

Thieves made off with the 130-year-old Wally Bird during a 2007 break-in at Pitzhanger Manor House in Ealing (credit: James Gamble/SWNS).

The stolen Wally Bird was then spotted in an auction catalogue by a researcher working with Christopher Marinello, lawyer and expert in tracing stolen art, years later.   

Mr Marinello negotiated the unconditional return of the piece and provided his services free of charge to Ealing Council.   

Paul Redington, a regional major loss manager for Zurich UK, said it was wonderful the valued piece had been returned to its rightful home.   

He said: "We're delighted this Wally Bird is back in the council's possession, and the community can once again appreciate this rare art piece.   

"Wally Birds are an important part of the borough's history, as many of the sculptures were crafted by the Martin brothers at their pottery in Southall.   

"With Wally Birds now highly sought after by collectors worldwide, it's wonderful to see this art piece back where it belongs."   

Martinware pottery was crafted in Southall by four brothers during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.   

Wally Bird sculptures are among their most famous works, known for their large beaks and feet, human-like heads and humorous expressions.   

A Canadian collector bought a Wally Bird caricature of Victorian Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli for £157,000 at an auction in 2015.   

As the pottery increased in value, it became more appealing to art thieves.   

Mr Redington added: "Many items of art are stolen to order, and never recovered, which is what makes this find all the more remarkable."