HomeNewsBeritaBusinessLifestyleOpinionWorldSportsPropertyEducationCarzillaGalleryVideosAccelerator

Artefacts theft in the Netherlands riles Romania

-

Robbers used explosives to break into the Drents Museum in Assen over the weekend and nab three antique bracelets and a 2,500-year-old gold helmet.

0
Shares
Total Views: 1
Free Malaysia Today
Romania’s Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said he was outraged that priceless objects from Romania’s treasure had been stolen. (EPA Images pic)

BUCHAREST:
Romania was abuzz on Tuesday after prehistoric gold artefacts were stolen from a Dutch museum, with the country’s rising far right branding the theft an “attack on identity”.

Robbers used explosives to break into the Drents Museum in Assen, the Netherlands, over the weekend and nab three antique bracelets and a 2,500-year-old gold helmet.

The Dacian artefacts were on loan from Romania’s National History Museum in Bucharest, alongside more than 500 pieces from other Romanian museums that are part of a temporary exhibition.

Following public outrage in Romania, the director of the Bucharest museum, Ernest Oberlaender-Tarnoveanu, was sacked on Tuesday for loaning the pieces to the Dutch museum in the first place.

Romania’s Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said he was “outraged that priceless objects from Romania’s treasure” had been stolen.

Dutch police said late Tuesday that “several leads” suggested the thieves came from northern Holland, adding that a team of “dozens” of investigators and specialists were working to recover the objects.

Romania is considering whether to claim “unprecedented damages” from the Dutch museum, which Ciolacu alleged was not sufficiently guarded at the time of the theft.

The Dutch government has pledged to make every effort to find the thieves and recover the artefacts.

Romania’s far right, emboldened by its strong showing in presidential and parliamentary elections in late 2024, has denounced the authorities for not doing enough to protect the objects.

The far-right AUR party, which has used symbols from the Dacian civilisation in the past, labelled the theft “a direct attack on our national history and identity”.

The party also claimed that the Netherlands had obtained the artefacts in exchange for approving Romania’s recent accession to Europe’s border-free Schengen area.

Romanian far-right candidate Calin Georgescu, the surprise first-round winner of presidential elections in November that were subsequently cancelled over claims of Russian interference, has called for resignations in the government.

Stay current - Follow FMT on WhatsApp, Google news and Telegram

Subscribe to our newsletter and get news delivered to your mailbox.