At Large  January 29, 2025  Carlota Gamboa

Ancient Romanian Artifacts Stolen From Dutch Museum

Wikimedia Commons

Drents Museum exterior. License

Four Romanian artifacts were stolen this past Saturday from the Drents Museum in Assen, a city in the northern Netherlands. According to CCTV footage provided to police by the museum, three hooded figures entered the building using dynamite around 3:45 AM. They ended up taking three golden bracelets and a nearly 2,500-year-old ceremonial helmet after only three minutes inside.

“This is a dark day for the Drents Museum in Assen,” said Drents Museum Director Harry Tupan in a statement. “We are intensely shocked by the events last night at the museum

Wikimedia Commons, Haiducul

Golden Dacian bracelets; Bratara Dacica 3. License 

In its 170-year existence, there has never been such a major incident.” However, this heist comes less than four months after a similar theft took place when the Dutch MPV gallery was also broken into using explosives. 

The artifacts, dated around 50 BCE, and the 5th century BCE golden helmet of Coțofenești have been on loan at the Drents since July 2024 as a part of the exhibition “Dacia – Empire of Gold and Silver.” 

The Dacians were a civilization which inhabited most of what is now Romania and other parts of the Balkans, before being invaded by the Romans. Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu stated that the historical artifacts were of “incalculable value,” saying that, “I trust that the Dutch authorities will do everything in their power to apprehend the culprits and return the artifacts to Romania.”

Despite the Prime Minister’s hope in the matter, the incident has sparked online suspicion as to why such valuable items had traveled from The National History Museum of Romania in Bucharest to a much smaller institution with little security. 

Wikimedia Commons, Dorieo

Helmet of Coțofenești 01. License

According to the loan agreements, the Drents Museum was supposed to have 24/7 surveillance of the pieces. Though there are guards on duty during the day, the collection is only protected by cameras throughout the night. 

The exhibition was set to conclude the following Sunday, but remained closed to the public due to damages sustained to the building’s structure. The stolen helmet weighed a little over two pounds and had been found in a Romanian village less than a century ago. Depicting a scene sacrificing a lamb and other mythological reliefs, the helmet also featured a pair of eyes that are thought to bring protection to the wearer against the “evil eye” in battle. 

About the Author

Carlota Gamboa

Carlota Gamboa is an art writer based in Los Angeles.

Subscribe to our free e-letter!

Webform