Thieves steal 3,000-year-old gold from museum in Spain in four minutes

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One of the world's largest Bronze Age gold collections was stolen in Spain on August 27. It was the latest in a series of high-profile thefts from European museums in recent months, Deutsche Welle reported.

The morning raid on the Villena Museum in eastern Spain lasted just four minutes. One official described them as "very fast and very professional." It turned out that a group of thieves took almost the entire "Villena Treasure" collection. They left behind only a few items.

**How did the theft happen?**

"The alarm at the Villena Museum went off at around 5:20 a.m.," a city council spokesman said.

He added that the thieves left the building in four minutes. It was a very quick and professional operation. The main exhibit at this small museum in the province of Alicante was a collection of Bronze Age gold. Subsequent research showed that some of the gold was made of meteorite metal.

“They took most of the treasure. We are completely shocked, I even tremble. Frankly, for us who live in Villena, this is a great tragedy. It was part of our heritage and our wealth,” Villena Mayor Fulgencio Cerdan told reporters.

According to Manuel Pineda, the deputy governor of Alicante, the thieves arrived in several cars. It is believed that they entered the museum through a window. Mayor Cerdan said that the thieves only left three silver dishes, a bracelet, an earring and one of four crowns. They may have dropped these items as they fled.

“All security systems are in place,” said a Villena spokesman, adding that there were no flaws on the part of the museum.

**What is the “Villena Treasure”?**

The “Villena Treasure” is a collection of more than 50 objects, mostly made of gold. It was discovered in 1963 by archaeologist José María Soler in a dried-up riverbed. The objects date back to 1300–1000 BC. The gold objects include 11 bowls, three bottles and 28 bracelets.

In addition to Villena, the collection has also been exhibited in cities such as Madrid, Alicante, Tokyo and Kyoto. Later, two sets of copies were made to avoid taking the original from the bronze display case at the Villena Archaeological Museum.

The historical value of the relics is difficult to assess. However, thieves may have difficulty selling these famous exhibits on the black market. The mayor said the gold alone is worth an estimated 1.7 million euros, or $2 million.

According to the museum’s website, it is considered by experts to be the most important collection of gold vessels from the Bronze Age. It is also the earliest known example of iron use in Western Europe. Recent research has shown that two of its parts were made of meteorite metal.

In October 2025, the Louvre Museum in France was also robbed. Thieves made off with millions of dollars’ worth of jewelry in less than 10 minutes in broad daylight. The incident led to the resignation of the museum’s director and a long-running political scandal, as well as the closure of part of the museum for a long time.