Four ‘extraordinary’ Renaissance paintings stolen from Italian museum

By Aleks Phillips

Four Renaissance paintings of “extraordinary value” have been stolen from a museum in

Sicily, Italy’s culture minister has said. Alessandro Giuli confirmed that three panels of the

Polyptych of San Gregorio and a double-sided panel of the Madonna with Child and Christ in

Pietà, all attributed to Antonello da Messina, were taken from the Regional Interdisciplinary

Museum of Messina on Saturday night.

Police are now probing how the thieves were able to enter the museum without triggering

its alarms and who may have been responsible. The incident is the latest in a string of museum

heists across Europe that have led to a growing number of priceless works disappearing from

public view.

Investigators are working on the initial suspicion that the paintings were stolen to order

by black market art thieves, according to Italian news agency Ansa. It reported that the

Madonna and Christ in Pietà was removed directly from inside a secure display case, while all

the paintings taken were on wooden panels, preventing them from easily being rolled up.

“We are shocked by what happened,” the museum’s director Marisa Mercurio told Ansa,

describing it as “a great loss for the museum, for the city, the community and the art world”.

Antonello da Messina was a 15th Century painter born and raised on Sicily, who would go

on to become one of the early Renaissance period's master painters. His San Gregorio

Polyptych, painted in 1473, depicts the Virgin Mary holding an infant Jesus Christ, flanked by

St Gregory and St Benedict as well as several angels.

The artwork, of which five panels survive, was commissioned for the monastery of Santa

Maria.

Meanwhile, his double-panel showing an infant Christ blessing a follower while being held

by the Virgin Mary on one side and an adult Christ in death on the other was painted around

the same time, though exactly when is unclear. Its small size suggests it was originally used

for private worship.

Federico Basile, the mayor of Messina, said he was “deeply outraged” by the “heinous

criminal act”. “A heritage belonging to all the people of Messina has been violated,” he said.

“Messina will not let its history be stolen.”

(Available at: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cqjxx2gzd9qo – text specially adapted for this test).