It’s a mystery wrapped in an enigma wrapped in a guitar case. A 1959 Gibson Les Paul guitar that former Rolling Stone guitarist Mick Taylor claims was once his has turned up at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art some 54 years after it may have been stolen from a villa in the South of France.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art responded to claims from former Rolling Stones musician Mick Taylor that the guitar — which he says was given to him from Keith Richards — was stolen.

When the Met announced the gift in May, Taylor thought he recognized the guitar, with its distinctive “starburst” finish, as an instrument he last saw in 1971, when the Stones were recording the album “Exile on Main St.” at Keith Richards’ rented villa in the south of France.

Representatives for Mick Taylor, the Rolling Stones’ former guitarist, said the Les Paul was stolen from him decades ago. The museum says he never owned it and has not made a claim.

The guitarist’s team says he last saw the famous instrument when it vanished 54 years ago. The Met, which received the guitar as part of a recent donation, disputes these claims

A guitar once played by two of the Rolling Stones is the source of a dispute between the band’s former guitarist and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. A 1959 Les Paul guitar, once played by two members of the Rolling Stones,