Shock in Italy as thieves steal Antonello da Messina masterpieces from Sicilian museum

The shock is palpable in Italy after thieves made off with several significant works by Renaissance master Antonello da Messina from the Regional Museum of Messina in Sicily. The brazen heist occurred late Saturday evening during the Ferragosto holiday, when much of the country was at a standstill.

Within minutes, the perpetrators stole three of the five panels from the renowned Polyptych of San Gregorio, completed in 1473. They also took a double-sided panel depicting the Madonna and Christ, which had been carefully removed from a secured display case. The thieves left the remaining two panels of the altarpiece behind as they fled.

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It is a great loss for the museum, the city, the community, and the art world.

Art experts estimate the value of the stolen masterpieces at between 70 and 80 million euros. This theft represents a profound loss for Messina, a city that has already seen much of its cultural heritage destroyed. The devastating earthquake of 1908 claimed numerous documents and artworks related to Messina's history, including significant damage to the San Gregorio monastery where the polyptych was housed.

Museum director Marisa Mercurio described the event as a "great loss for the museum, the city, the community, and the art world." Messina's mayor, Federico Basile, condemned the act as an assault on the "artistic heritage of the city."

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an attack on the artistic heritage of the city.