Without setting off the alarm system, two men have made off with rare jewelry from a collection worth a "few million euros." Venice's police commissioner has described the thieves as "very skilled professionals."
Image: picture-alliance/AP/A. Merola
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Thieves stole several items of Indian Maharajahs' treasures displayed at a Venice exhibition, Italian police said on Wednesday.
A man managed to open a display case at the exhibition without triggering the alarm system while an accomplice kept watch.
The alarm system sounded only after the two men had escaped and disappeared into a crowd outside the Palazzo Ducale, where the exhibition was held, in the renowned Saint Mark's Square in Venice.
Venice police commissioner Vito Gagliardi said the thieves likely had previous experience stealing high-profile goods.
"We are certainly dealing with very skilled professionals, who got away with it even though the building and the rooms were kitted out with very advanced technological systems," said Gagliardi.
'Few million euros'
The thieves stole a jeweled golden brooch and a pair of earrings. Although authorities have placed a customs value of just €30,000 ($36,000) on the jewelry, its actual worth was a "few million euros," according to Gagliardi.
The collection displayed at the "Treasures of the Mughals and the Maharajas" exhibition was assembled by the late Sheikh Hamad bin Abdullah al-Thani and now belongs to a member of the Qatari royal family.
Bloody gold and deadly weapons
The special exhibition at the Archaeological Open Air Museum in Gross Raden is showing 3,300-year-old artifacts. Weapons and jewelry from the Bronze Age reflect how beauty, power, violence and trade interrelate.
Image: LAKD M-V/Landesarchäologie/S. Suhr
Bloody gold
Plunderers thoroughly looted most of the bodies following the battle, but they missed these gold rings. Though they may shine in their original glory today, they still bear – symbolic – traces of blood. The special exhibition "Bloody Gold – Power and Violence in the Bronze Age" ran until September 18, 2018 in the Gross Raden Archaeological Open Air Museum.
Image: LAKD M-V/Landesarchäologie/S. Suhr
Deadly projectiles
The battle in the Tollense River Valley was one of life or death. This image shows a selection of bronze arrow tips that have been discoveredon the site. Around 90 percent of the battlegrounds in the region in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania have yet to be dug up by curious archaeologists.
Image: LAKD M-V/Landesarchäologie/S. Suhr
Death in the Bronze Period
Apparently, this young man did not see death coming his way. This image shows why: An arrow pierced the back of his head. The bronze arrow tip is still stuck in the skull, thereby relaying a story over 3,000 years old.
Image: Tollensetal-Projekt/V. Minkus
Men's fashion in the Bronze Age
It may be hard to believe, but this delicately designed bracelet was worn by a man. The bracelet was found in a man's grave discovered in Promoisel. Only one other such ring has ever been found – on the Danish island of Bornholm.
Image: LAKD M-V/Landesarchäologie/S. Suhr
Sacrificial offering in the Bronze Age?
This bronze belt purse is clearly a feminine fashion accessory. But since only the skeletons of men have been found at the battlegrounds in the Tollense River Valley, it is possible that this was a sacrificial offering that sunk in the river following the battle. But maybe someone also just lost it. Some mysteries may never be solved.
Image: Niedersächsisches Landesamt für Denkmalpflege/Gundula Lidke
Sounds in the Bronze Age
This "Horn of Wismar" is not an artifact from the battle on the riverbanks of the Tollense River, but it was manufactured around the same time. This magnificent specimen has metal fittings on which soldiers are depicted who are carrying spears and shields. The horn was discovered more than 100 years ago near Wismar.
Image: LAKD M-V/Landesarchäologie/S. Suhr
Chieftain's brooch
The special exhibition "Bloody Gold" at the Gross Raden Open Air Museum presents the complete contents of several graves. One of those includes the chieftain's grave of Crivitz, which also contained this gold brooch. Only eight such brooches have been discovered thus far, most of them in Denmark.
Image: LAKD M-V/Landesarchäologie/S. Suhr
Curious mix from the Bronze Age
This image shows an interesting mixture of symbols of both beauty and violence: a sword, a bracelet, a tutulus and two sickles from the Tollense River Valley. The Bronze Age was in no way a period free of violence, yet people also preoccupied themselves with beautiful things such as arts and crafts.
Image: LAKD M-V/Landesarchäologie/S. Suhr
Merchandise from the Bronze Age
The four little bronze spirals were parts of garments people wore over 3,000 years ago. Researchers identified the two metal rings as merchandise that was traded. All of these objects were found in the Tollense River Valley.
