LONDON, ENGLAND.- The Times of London reported that two Italian Renaissance paintings worth a fortune and missing since the start of the 19th century were found in Britain in the spare room of a house.

These two small portraits of saints are the missing panels from the altarpiece of the church and convent of San Marco in Florence, central Italy, painted by the monk Fra Angelico in 1439. The newspaper reported that the works were broken up during the Napoleonic wars, six of the eight paintings that surrounded the main panel had been found and the whereabouts of the last two was described as one of art's greatest mysteries. The missing paintings are expected to raise more than $2.16-million at auction in March.

The works were found at the home of retired academic Jean Preston in Oxford, hanging behind a door in a spare room. She died earlier this year at the age of 77, having only recently discovered the paintings' importance.