Thieves made off with four paintings from the Renoir Museum in Cagnes-sur-Mer on the French Riviera, as reported by the local mayor. However, during a police chase triggered by alarms early on Tuesday, the perpetrators dropped two of the stolen artworks in the gardens.
Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s most valuable pieces from the impressionist painter have commanded prices in the tens of millions of dollars at auctions. Mayor Bryan Masson stated that the thieves unlawfully entered the museum shortly before 6 a.m. by creating a hole in a garden fence to seize the four paintings, marking another bold art theft in the country.
Masson emphasized the gravity of the situation, saying, “Attacking the Renoir Museum is an attack on a significant part of Cagnes-sur-Mer’s history and heritage. These actions are deeply concerning.”
The museum, situated on a hill in Cagnes-sur-Mer near Nice, was established in 1960 within the artist’s former mansion, where Renoir passed away in 1919. The museum’s collection comprises 13 paintings by the master, alongside approximately 40 sculptures, furniture pieces, and photographs.
According to the local publication Nice-Matin, the stolen artworks encompassed “Portrait of Madame Colonna Romano,” “Coco Lisant,” and “Young Girl at the Well.” Masson refrained from disclosing the specific paintings that were taken.
Europol, the pan-European police organization, recently highlighted an uptick in violent art robberies across Europe. The agency noted a shift from specialized criminal gangs to ad hoc opportunists recruited via social media. Last year’s heist at the Louvre Museum in Paris, where thieves menaced guards and visitors to steal jewels valued at €88 million ($141.5 million Cdn), exemplified this trend.