Thieves steal Renaissance artworks in museum heist during Italian holiday
Thieves stole four Renaissance masterworks by Antonello da Messina from a museum in Sicily during a local holiday. The heist involved cutting through security fencing and breaching armored display cases.
Why it matters
The theft represents a significant loss of cultural heritage, with the stolen artworks valued at up to 80 million euros.
As Messina celebrated the Sicilian holiday of Ferragosto, thieves struck the MuMe museum to steal the masterworks by Antonello da Messina.
x whatsapp-stroke copylink google Add Al Jazeera on Google info A journalist browses the Messina museum website showing a picture of the Early Renaissance painter Antonello da Messina's artwork, which has been stolen [Gregorio Borgia/AP] By Heba Habib and AP Published On 17 Aug 2026 17 Aug 2026 Thieves have stolen four Renaissance masterworks by Antonello da Messina valued at up to 80 million euros ($93m) from the MuMe Regional Interdisciplinary Museum in the Sicilian city of Messina in Italy.
Cultural officials and Italian media reported the theft on Sunday, saying the heist occurred at about 9:50pm (19:50 GMT) the day before, during Sicily’s major Ferragosto holiday.
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