In the early hours of January 25, 2025, thieves used explosives to break into the Drents Museum in Assen, the Netherlands, and stole major loans from the exhibition Dacia: Kingdom of Gold and Silver. The stolen objects included the Golden Helmet of Cotofenesti, a Geto-Dacian ceremonial helmet from the fifth century BCE, and three Dacian gold bracelets. The exhibition, assembled from Romanian museum collections, was in its final weekend and had presented hundreds of gold and silver objects from ancient Dacia. Contemporary reports emphasized the cultural rather than bullion value of the objects; Drents Museum director Harry Tupan called it a dark day for cultural heritage. The theft triggered police and Interpol involvement, diplomatic pressure between Romania and the Netherlands, and later recovery efforts.
The heist became a major test case for international loan security and the vulnerability of archaeological gold to destructive theft.