In brief
Early Tuesday, two thieves exploited a weak fence to seize four Renoir paintings from the Cagnes‑sur‑Mer museum, dropping two in the gardens before fleeing. The missing pieces, *Portrait of Madame Colonna Romano* (1910) and *Jeune fille au puits* (1886), each valued at €9 million (≈$10 million), remain unlocatable. The local mayor reported the suspects were well‑equipped and that police arrived five minutes after the alarm triggered. Subsequent searches recovered *Portrait of Madame Pichon* (1895) and *Coco Lisant* (1905) from the grounds. This incident follows a string of high‑profile art thefts across Europe, prompting officials to demand increased security funding.
Two Renoir Masterpieces Vanish in Cagnes‑sur‑Mer Museum Heist
On early Tuesday morning, thieves broke into the Renoir Museum in Cagnes‑sur‑Mer, southern France, and stole four highly valuable paintings. The museum's security alarm rang at 05:48 GMT, prompting police to arrive within five minutes.
According to Mayor Bryan Masson, the robbers were “well‑equipped and well‑informed,” wearing helmets, gloves and combat gear while wielding an electric knife and hacksaw. Evidence left behind includes two zip‑up bags that investigators suspect belonged to the suspects.
The missing works, each valued at €9 million (about $10 million), are Pierre‑Auguste Renoir’s *Portrait of Madame Colonna Romano* (1910) and *Jeune fille au puits* (1886). The two paintings that were recovered are *Portrait of Madame Pichon* (1895) and *Coco Lisant* (1905).
The incident highlights the growing threat to European art institutions. Mayor Masson called on the French government for more financial support to safeguard local museums against what he described as “increasingly organised and determined criminals.”
