Two thieves broke into the Renoir Museum in southern France on September 8, 2026, stealing four Pierre-Auguste Renoir paintings valued collectively at $10.5 million and dropping one as they fled.
The Renoir Museum break-in occurred at approximately at 5.48pm local time in Cagnes-sur-Mer, a town on the French Riviera. according to a BBC report, The suspects used an electric saw to cut a hole through the perimeter fence and forced entry into the ground floor. Local mayor Bryan Masson noted that they appeared well-equipped and well-informed, timing the heist to exploit a shift change among security personnel.
Within five minutes the museum’s alarm system alerted the municipal police, who arrived on the scene promptly. This sparked fear among thieves, who later fled dropping two of the four stolen paintings in the museum’s garden.
The paintings, each worth €9m (£7.7m; $10.4m), are the latest high-profile pieces to have been stolen this year following a string of heists in Europe
Four pieces by the Impressionist master were targeted in total but two remain missing, while two were successfully recovered on the grounds.
A local Mayor Bryan Masson said.
“Attacking the Renoir Museum is attacking a part of the history and heritage of Cagnes-sur-Mer,” he said.
He added that two painting were “abandoned” in the gardens and have now been recovered.
The two paintings that are still missing are:
– Portrait of Madame Colonna Romano (1910)
– Jeune fille au puits (1886)
And the two pieces that were recovered are:
– Portrait of Madame Pichon (1895)
– Coco Lisant (1905)
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