Phoenix 24
The three works were discovered in an apartment in Parma nearly five months after masked thieves removed them from a private museum in a raid lasting less than three minutes.
PARMA, ITALY | CULTURE | AUGUST 2026
Italian authorities have recovered three paintings by Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Paul Cézanne and Henri Matisse that were stolen from the Magnani Rocca Foundation near Parma in March.
Officers from the Carabinieri’s specialized Cultural Heritage Protection Unit located the artworks during searches ordered as part of the continuing investigation. Italian media reported that the paintings were found inside an apartment in Parma.
The recovered pieces are Cézanne’s Cup and Plate of Cherries, Renoir’s The Fish and Matisse’s Odalisque on the Terrace. Their combined value exceeds €9 million, or approximately $10.4 million.
Authorities estimate that the Cézanne is worth €6 million and the Renoir approximately €3 million. The Matisse carries a considerably lower financial valuation of around €20,000, although its cultural and historical significance extends beyond its market price.
The paintings were stolen during the night of March 22 to 23 from the Magnani Rocca Foundation in Mamiano di Traversetolo, approximately 20 kilometres from Parma.
Surveillance footage released by police shows two masked intruders entering through a window, removing the paintings from a gallery wall and immediately leaving the building. The operation was completed in less than three minutes.
Security systems and the rapid arrival of museum personnel and police prevented the thieves from taking additional works. Investigators subsequently described the robbery as a structured and carefully organized operation.
Nine Moldovan nationals are reportedly under investigation in connection with the theft. Italian authorities have not disclosed their alleged individual roles, and the inquiry remains open.
The Magnani Rocca Foundation occupies a historic villa surrounded by countryside and gardens. Established in 1977, it preserves the private collection assembled by Italian music critic, art historian and collector Luigi Magnani.
Its galleries contain works by Titian, Francisco Goya, Albrecht Dürer, Peter Paul Rubens, Anthony van Dyck, Claude Monet, Giorgio Morandi and other major figures in European art.
The recovery represents a significant achievement for Italy’s cultural heritage police, one of the world’s most experienced units dedicated to investigating stolen art, archaeological trafficking and crimes involving historic property.
Before returning to public display, the paintings are expected to undergo technical examinations to confirm their condition and determine whether they suffered any damage while outside the museum.
When a stolen work of art returns home, a fragment of humanity’s shared memory returns with it.