Messina, Aug. 16 (LaPresse) – A sensational theft took place at the MUME in Messina. On the evening of Aug. 15, unidentified individuals managed to enter the exhibition rooms, bypassing the alarm devices and security systems, and took four works attributed to Antonello da Messina. Among the stolen works, according to ‘Messina in diretta’, are three of the five surviving panels of the San Gregorio Polyptych, dated 1473. A double-sided panel depicting the Madonna and Christ in Pietà was also taken, removed directly from the armored display case. Police forces, together with forensic specialists, were at the scene to conduct investigations and reconstruct the dynamics of the break-in. Due to the theft, the MUME management ordered the museum to be closed to the public today.
Messina, theft at the MuMe: works by Antonello da Messina stolen
Messina, Aug. 16 (LaPresse) – A sensational theft took place at the MUME in Messina. On the evening of Aug. 15, unidentified individuals managed to enter the exhibition rooms, bypassing the alarm devices and security systems, and took four works attributed to Antonello da Messina. Among the stolen works, according to ‘Messina in diretta’, are three of the five surviving panels of the San Gregorio Polyptych, dated 1473. A double-sided panel depicting the Madonna and Christ in Pietà was also taken, removed directly from the armored display case. Police forces, together with forensic specialists, were at the scene to conduct investigations and reconstruct the dynamics of the break-in. Due to the theft, the MUME management ordered the museum to be closed to the public today.