Two Renoir paintings missing after break-in at France museum

Cagnes-sur-Mer: Police are currently searching for two individuals who stole two Renoir paintings from a museum in southern France. They abandoned two other paintings in the museum's garden while fleeing the scene, according to the town's mayor. This incident is part of a series of art robberies in France, including the theft of a $100 million collection of crown jewelry from the Louvre in Paris last year.

The thieves were reportedly "well equipped and well informed" about the museum, as Bryan Masson, the mayor, stated. They used a metal saw to cut through the frames of the Renoir artworks. However, the museum alarms and police sirens forced the burglars to act quickly, resulting in the theft of only four paintings. Two of the stolen works are "Madame Colonna Romano" and "Jeune femme au puits", while the other two retrieved paintings are "Madame Pichon" and "Coco lisant," a portrait of Renoir's young son Claude reading.

The Renoir Museum is located about a half-hour drive from Nice, in the French painter's last home before his death in 1919. The museum houses nine Renoir paintings, sculptures, and personal items belonging to the artist. The mayor called for increased funding from the culture ministry to enhance security at French museums, emphasizing that these cultural treasures belong to all French citizens.

A series of art heists in France, including the Louvre robbery, has raised concerns about the security measures in place and the vulnerability of museums to criminal gangs. Italian police recovered over $10.4 million worth of paintings by Renoir, Cézanne, and Matisse in a three-minute heist in August, but the stolen artifacts from that incident are still missing.

In 1911, a high-profile theft saw Leonardo da Vinci's "Mona Lisa" stolen from the Louvre Museum in Paris, with the thief later caught when attempting to sell the artwork.