Stolen Renaissance paintings by Antonello da Messina from Messina museum
Consensus Summary
Four artworks by the 15th-century painter Antonello da Messina were stolen overnight from the Museo Regionale di Messina, including three of the five remaining panels of the Polittico di San Gregorio altarpiece and a two-sided devotional painting. The theft occurred on or around August 15, a national holiday, and involved bypassing security measures. The stolen works were part of the only surviving works by Antonello to remain in his hometown, originally destined for the Monastero di San Gregorio, which was destroyed in the 1908 Messina earthquake. The theft follows a recent recovery of three French masterpieces stolen earlier this year from Parma. Both sources agree the stolen two-sided painting was acquired by the Sicilian Region in 2003, the year it was attributed to Antonello, but differ on the timing and financial details of recent high-value Antonello sales.
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Key details reported by multiple sources:
- Four artworks by 15th-century painter Antonello da Messina were stolen overnight from the Museo Regionale di Messina
- Three of the five remaining panels of the Polittico di San Gregorio were stolen
- The altarpiece originally comprised six panels, destined for a monastery destroyed in the 1908 Messina earthquake
- A fourth stolen artwork was a small two-sided painting depicting the Virgin with Child and a Franciscan monk on one side and Christ on the other, acquired by the Sicilian Region in 2003
- The theft occurred on or around August 15, a national holiday in Italy
- The stolen works include the only surviving work by Antonello da Messina to have remained in his native city
- The theft happened after Italian police recovered three paintings by French masters (Cézanne, Renoir, Matisse) stolen earlier this year from a museum near Parma in March
- The stolen two-sided painting was part of the Wilhelm Soldan collection and sold by Christie’s in 2003, the year it was attributed to Antonello da Messina
- The altarpiece was created for the Monastero di San Gregorio
Points of Difference
Details reported by only one source:
- A local councillor believes the purchase of one Messina artwork by the Italian state for $US15 million ($21 million) this year may have put the museum on the radar
- Culture minister Alessandro Giuli expressed confidence in the police inquiry on Sunday
- The stolen art includes a small painting acquired by the Sicilian Region two decades ago
- The theft was described as 'almost out of a movie' by a local councillor
- The purchase price of the stolen artwork was $US15 million ($21 million) this year
- Thieves bypassed alarm systems and broke into a security display box
- The theft may have capitalized on attention focused on La Vara, a religious festival on 15 August
- The Italian government spent $14.9m (£11m) in February on an Antonello masterpiece (Ecce Homo) at auction in New York
- Antonello was born around 1430 and trained in Naples, with influence from Provençal and Flemish artists
- The Ecce Homo painting was believed to have been completed about 1460
Contradictions
Conflicting information between sources:
- ABC states the stolen artwork was purchased for $US15 million ($21 million) this year, while the Guardian says the Italian government spent $14.9m (£11m) in February on a different Antonello masterpiece (Ecce Homo)
- ABC mentions the theft occurred on August 15, while the Guardian says thieves gained access on Saturday evening (implying August 16) during the national holiday
Source Articles
Four paintings by Renaissance artist stolen from Italian museum
Four artworks by 15th century painter Antonello da Messina have been stolen from a museum overnight according to Italy's culture minister.
Rare Renaissance paintings by Antonello da Messina stolen from Sicilian museum
Four works were taken during public holiday, the day after Italian police recovered paintings by Cézanne, Renoir and Matisse Four of the most important works of art by the 15th-century Renaissance master Antonello da Messina were stolen during a national holiday from a museum in the Sicilian port city of Messina. Thieves gained access to the regional museum of Messina , or MuMe, on Saturday evening, possibly capitalising on attention being focused on La Vara, a huge religious festival that takes