Two Renoir paintings stolen from French museum are recovered

{"heading_1":"The Theft and Recovery","content_1":"On September 8, thieves cut through a fence and smashed a window at the Renoir Museum in Cagnes-sur-Mer, where the French impressionist had lived during his final years. The two missing paintings were the Portrait of Madame Colonna Romano (1910) and Jeune fille au puits (1886). The thieves had used an electric saw to cut through the frame mountings inside the museum and had initially made off with four paintings, but dropped two of them in the museum's garden as they fled.","content_2":"The local mayor praised authorities for recovering the paintings and said the news gave immense joy and profound relief. The Renoir Museum is home to 12 of the famous painter's artworks and houses a variety of objects that once belonged to him, including his easel and wheelchair, as well as photographs and personal letters.","content_3":"The theft was the latest in a series of high-profile art heists in Europe. Earlier this year, paintings by Renoir, Paul Cézanne and Henri Matisse were stolen from a museum near the Italian city of Parma, in a raid that lasted just three minutes. They were recovered in August."}