Three French masterpieces worth 9 million euros recovered in Italy after March theft

Italian authorities have recovered three valuable French paintings, collectively worth an estimated 9 million euros, that were stolen from a museum near Parma in March. The artworks, by masters Paul Cézanne, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and Henri Matisse, were recovered by the Carabinieri's cultural heritage protection unit following a complex investigation.

The theft occurred on the night of March 22-23 from the Fondazione Magnani Rocca museum in Mamiano di Traversetolo. The recovered pieces are Cézanne's "Tasse et Plat de Cerises" (Dish and Fruit Bowl), Renoir's "Les Poissons" (The Fish), and Matisse's "Odalisque sur la Terrasse" (Odalisque on the Terrace).

Police released security footage showing two masked individuals entering the museum through a window. The burglars swiftly removed the three paintings from the walls and exited the building in less than three minutes. The Fondazione Magnani Rocca houses a significant private collection amassed by the late music critic Luigi Magnani, featuring works by artists such as Titian, Francisco Goya, and Claude Monet.