“We are devastated by what happened. They were among Antonello da Messina’s most important and best-known works. It is a tremendous loss for the museum, the city, the community and the art world,” MuMe director Marisa Mercurio told Italian news agency ANSA on Sunday.
“Messina without Antonello is deprived of the very essence of the greatest artist of the European Renaissance,” Enzo Caruso, Messina culture councillor, told broadcaster Sky Italia.
The theft is the latest high-profile heist in the art world. Days before, Italian police said they recovered three artworks by Renoir, Cézanne, and Matisse that had been stolen from Parma’s Magnani Rocca Foundation in March. Five people were detained in connection with the theft.
MuMe was closed to the public on Sunday amid ongoing investigations.
Here’s what we know so far about the heist.
How the theft happened
At least three masked people approached the museum at around 9:50 p.m. on Saturday, Italian media reported, citing museum officials and preliminary investigative materials. The theft took place during the Vara procession marking the Ferragosto holiday, which commemorates the feast of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary.
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