Over the weekend, a group of thieves armed with explosives forced entry into a Dutch museum and made off with at least four valuable gold artifacts from Romania. Local and international authorities are currently investigating the heist at the Drents Museum in Assen, a city in the northeastern Netherlands.
“We Are Deeply Shocked By This Event”
According to a police report, at about 3:45 A.M. on Saturday, January 25, Dutch authorities received a report of an explosion at the Drents Museum in Assen. When police arrived at the scene, they discovered that explosives had been used to force open an entrance door and shatter several windows, allowing thieves to break into the museum. At least four valuable archaeological artifacts were taken from a current exhibition featuring gold and silver objects on loan from museums in Romania. No injuries were reported at the scene, but display cases in the exhibition space suffered damage.
The Drents Museum published a statement which reads, “We are deeply shocked by this event. It saddens us greatly, and we extend our heartfelt sympathy to our colleagues at the National History Museum of Romania in Bucharest, from whom the stolen artworks were borrowed.”
Gold Helmet From 450 BCE Targeted in Museum Heist
The Drents Museum’s current exhibition, Dacia: Empire of Gold and Silver, features hundreds of gold and silver objects on loan from over a dozen Romanian museums. The golden Helmet of Coțofenești, which dates back to 450 BCE, was confirmed missing after the museum heist, along with three golden Dacian bracelets. The helmet was the exhibition’s most-hyped highlight, appearing in promotional materials. It bears symbols and scenes from Getic mythology, as well as a pair of eyes that was thought to deter enemies during battle. The helmet was discovered by a group of children in a Romanian village in 1927.
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The three bracelets stolen during the museum heist come from a series of 24 pieces that have only been found in the ancient Dacian capital of Sarmizegetusa Regia. They were decorated with wolf fur and scales and used as religious offerings in ancient Dacia. The Dacians were an ancient Indo-European civilization that lived near the Carpathian Mountains and west of the Black Sea, primarily in modern-day Romania.
“A Nightmare Scenario For Any Museum”
Over the weekend, Dutch authorities launched a large-scale operation to identify the suspects in the museum heist. Local investigators, who are reportedly working with Interpol (the International Criminal Police Organization), told NL Times, “We are carefully analyzing all available evidence, and it could take some time before concrete leads emerge.”
Arthur Brand, a Dutch art historian and art crime investigator, expressed concerns about the likelihood of recovering the stolen artifacts. “This is a nightmare scenario for any museum,” said Brand. “Paintings are often stolen with the intent to sell or return them later. But gold is stolen to be melted down. For Romania, this is a disaster; this collection was significant national heritage.”
