Image used for representation only.
Rome: Four works "of extraordinary value" by Renaissance artist Antonello da Messina have been stolen from a museum in Sicily, Italy's culture ministry said Sunday.
The theft, that includes three panels of the 15th century San Gregorio Polyptych, occurred late Saturday at a museum in Messina, the religious painter's hometown.
The theft comes just months after the Italian state bought a work called "Ecce Homo" by Antonello da Messina at a New York auction in New York for nearly $15 million (13 million euros).
Messina mayor Federico Basile called the theft "deeply reprehensible", saying it was "even more painful" as it took place during traditional city celebrations in honour of the Virgin Mary.
Art thefts are frequent in Italy.
Italian police two days ago said they had recovered three paintings by Renoir, Cezanne and Matisse worth over nine million euros ($10.4 million) that had been stolen from a museum near Parma in northern Italy in March, allegedly by a gang of Moldovans.
