A band of thieves blasted their way into a Dutch museum to steal a 2,400-year-old golden helmet — with fears growing that they could melt the priceless artifact.
The ancient Cotofenesti helmet was stolen early Saturday by four crooks who blew open the doors to the Drents Museum in Assen, with grainy surveillance footage showing them making off with it and three other gold bracelets in mere minutes.
The ancient helmet is revered as one of Romania’s national treasures, which experts believe will make it impossible to find a buyer, meaning the crooks will only make money off the gold it is made from.
“It is simply unsellable. The whole world knows it,” Dutch art expert Arthur Brand said.
“So, they likely went for the gold to — I almost dare not utter the words — melt it,” he said.
The stolen Cotofenesti helmet and accompanying bracelets were on display at the Dutch museum for a six-month stint, with the heist leaving Romanian officials shaken at the apparent breach of trust over the museum’s failure to secure such items of cultural significance.
“Even in our most pessimistic dreams, we would not have believed it possible,” said Ernest Oberlander-Tarnoveanu, the director of Romania’s National History Museum.
Romanian Justice Minister Radu Marinescu said the heist was tantamount to a “crime against our state,” calling on officials to treat the recovery of the artifacts as “an absolute priority.”
The princely helmet, which dates back to 450 B.C., was first discovered by a child in a tiny Romanian village in 1927, with the artifact initially used as a toy and chicken pot before officials were flagged about the historic finding.
Experts say the helmet is a relic of the ancient Dacia civilization depicting several mythological creatures and a man holding a dagger and appearing to sacrifice a ram.
Harry Tupan, the director of the Dutch museum, described the robbery as a “pitch dark day,” after the explosion used in the heist left the building damaged.
Investigators said the thieves blasted their way in at around 3:45 a.m. on Saturday, with grainy security footage catching three of the suspects looting the museum in a matter of minutes.
Police were flagged about a suspicious car in the area 30 minutes later, with the vehicle found burnt to a crisp, suggesting the thieves were doing all they could to cover their tracks.
Dutch police are currently investigating the heist along with Interpol, the police organization that spans 196 member countries.
With Post wires
