France buys Poussin painting

The French government has agreed to buy the 17th century masterpiece “The Flight Into Egypt” by French painter Nicolas Poussin, the culture ministry said.

The painting, which depicts an angel guiding the Holy Family, was sold by an unidentified private owner for an undisclosed sum, the ministry said in a statement.

It will be displayed at Paris’ Louvre Museum before becoming a part of the permanent collection of the Fine Arts Museum in Lyon. Both museums and about 20 private donors chipped in to help buy the painting, the statement said.