Two Renoir Masterpieces Recovered After Cagnes‑sur‑Mer Museum Heist
Two paintings by the French Impressionist Auguste Renoir, taken from the Renoir Museum in Cagnes‑sur‑Mer, have been recovered after a daring theft last month.
The museum was breached on 8 September when thieves cut a fence and smashed a display window, initially taking four canvases. They cut through the frame mountings inside the gallery with an electric saw, and dropped the two works that later turned up in the museum garden.
The recovered pieces are the 1910 portrait of Madame Colonna Romano and the 1886 Jeune fille au puits, both of which were once part of the town’s cultural heritage and Renoir’s final years in the region.
Police arrested six suspects in connection with the heist, and the mayor expressed deep relief and joy at the swift recovery of the artworks.
This incident follows other high‑profile European art robberies, including a recent raid near Parma that targeted Renoir, Cézanne, and Matisse works, and a 2025 Louvre jewellery theft that highlighted gaps in museum security.
