The thieves stole four of Antonello’s works from the Regional Museum of Messina (MuMe), local officials said on Sunday. The 15th century artist is credited with revolutionizing Renaissance portraiture by popularizing elements of Flemish realism and oil-painting techniques in Italy.
“Messina without Antonello is deprived of the very essence of the greatest artist of the European Renaissance,” Enzo Caruso, Messina culture councillor, told broadcaster Sky Italia.
MuMe was closed to the public on Sunday amid ongoing investigations.
At least three masked people approached the museum at around 9:50 p.m. on Saturday, Italian media reported, citing museum officials and preliminary investigative materials. The theft took place during the Vara procession marking the Ferragosto holiday, which commemorates the feast of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary.
The theft took place over a few minutes, local media reported.
What was stolen
All five surviving wooden panels of the San Gregorio Polyptych, an altarpiece signed and dated to 1473, were removed, while another small double-sided panel was removed from a secure display case. But authorities later recovered two of the polyptych panels that appeared to have been abandoned on a low wall outside the museum. A citizen had noticed the abandoned panels and made the first call to police.
Of the remaining five panels, the two upper panels depicted the “Annunciation of the Virgin.” The middle panel portrayed “Madonna and Child Enthroned,” flanked on either side by depictions of Saints Gregory and Benedict.
Another work, a small double-sided panel portraying the Virgin Mary and Child with a Franciscan friar in adoration on one side and the dead Christ in Pietà on the other, was also stolen. The painting is dated to between 1465 and 1470. The work was attributed to Antonello in 2003 and acquired by Sicily at Christie’s auction house that same year. Based on its small size, it is believed to have been created for private worship.
Earlier this year, Italy acquired Antonello’s devotional painting “Ecce Homo” for $14.9 million from Sotheby’s in New York.
What comes next
Prosecutors in Messina opened an investigation into the theft. Several officials, including Caruso, suggested that the heist could have been carried out by professionals or on commission for the black market, although the prosecutor’s office have not confirmed any theories.
But some observers have criticized the museum’s security arrangements after the theft, raising concerns about staffing levels. Others have criticized the broader political and administrative management of Sicily’s cultural heritage.
Selling famous stolen art through legitimate channels is virtually impossible. “Stealing an Antonello may be far easier than selling one. If these are ordinary thieves, they will soon discover that—to their cost,” Lynda Albertson, director of the Association for Research into Crimes against Art (ARCA), told the Italian daily La Repubblica.
Last year, a similarly brazen theft at the Louvre in Paris, France, put international attention on museum security. In October, thieves broke into the Louvre’s Galerie d’Apollon in broad daylight and escaped with eight pieces of crown jewellery valued at 88 million euros. Although several suspects have been arrested, the stolen jewels remain missing.
Hence then, the article about how a renaissance art heist happened in sicily was published today ( ) and is available on Time ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( How a Renaissance Art Heist Happened in Sicily )
Also on site :
- ‘Dancing with the Stars’ Pro Witney Carson Reveals Shocking Cancer Battle She Kept Secret From Producers (Exclusive)
- 1988 Rock Song by Iconic Supergroup, Written Mainly by George Harrison, Is Still an Iconic Hit 38 Years Later
- ’60s Folk Rock Legends’ 1981 Central Park Reunion Is Still Among ‘Greatest Live Performances of All Time’