Three priceless paintings by Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Paul Cézanne and Henri Matisse were stolen from a museum near Parma, Italy, in a rapid heist, police said.

Four masked individuals entered the Magnani Rocca Foundation villa on March 22 and took Les Poissons by Renoir, Still Life with Cherries by Cézanne and Odalisque on the Terrace by Matisse, authorities reported.

Italian media said the thieves completed the raid in just three minutes. The museum’s alarm system interrupted the robbery, preventing the culprits from taking additional works.

The incident follows a spate of high-profile art crimes, including last October’s daylight theft of jewels from the Louvre in Paris.

According to reports, the gang forced their way through the main entrance of the Villa dei Capolavori, located in the Parma countryside, and removed the paintings from the French Room on the first floor.

The foundation described the thieves as "structured and organised," adding that they appeared prepared to steal more if not for the alarms and the prompt police response.

Regional broadcaster TGR reported that the robbers fled by climbing a fence. The stolen pieces are estimated to be worth a total of €9 million (£7.8 million), with Renoir’s Les Poissons alone valued at €6 million, marking one of Italy’s most significant art thefts in recent years.

Renoir, a leading figure in the Impressionist movement, painted Les Poissons around 1917. Cézanne’s Still Life with Cherries, created circa 1890, is notable among his cherry-themed works for its rare use of watercolour, a medium he embraced only late in life, the foundation said.

Matisse’s Odalisque on the Terrace, painted in 1922, shows two figures: one reclining in sunlight while another holds a violin.

The Carabinieri and Bologna’s Cultural Heritage Protection Unit are investigating the theft, which was made public on Sunday.

The Magnani Rocca Foundation was founded in 1984 after the death of Luigi Magnani, a composer and art collector, and is housed in his family home.