London, Oct 17 (IANS): Masterpieces by Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse and Claude Monet were among the works worth millions of pounds stolen from a Dutch museum, the Daily Mail reported Tuesday.

Thieves managed to raid the high-security Kunsthal museum in Rotterdam.

One expert who tracks stolen art said the smooth nature of the theft suggests the robbers must have had inside information.

Dutch police confirmed seven paintings were stolen.

The theft is one of the art world's most dramatic in recent years, and one of the biggest ever in the Netherlands, the newspaper said.

Roland Ekkers, a spokesman for Rotterdam police, said they received a call alerting them to the theft around 3 a.m. Tuesday.

The paintings stolen include two Claude Monet's: "Charing Cross Bridge" and "Waterloo Bridge", part of his famous London series.

Also taken were Pablo Picasso's "Tete d'Arlequin", Henri Matisse's "La Liseuse en Blanc et Jaune" and Lucien Freud's "Woman with Eyes Closed", Paul Gaugin's "Femme Devant une Fenetre Ouvertem dite La Fiancee" and Meyer de Hann's "Autoportrait".