Case · C-001

Magenta 1933: the alleged retrieval of a disc, known only from anonymous papers

Magenta (Milan), Lombardy · Italy · 1933

On land

What happened

According to anonymous documents received by the ufologist Roberto Pinotti in 1996, in 1933 a metallic disc is said to have crashed or landed near Magenta and to have been studied by a “Gabinetto RS/33” established by Mussolini; the versions give June 13 or April 11. Before 1996 there is no documentary trace of the affair and no official archive has confirmed it. The role of Pius XII and the transfer of the craft to the United States appear only in later accounts; since 2023 David Grusch has cited Magenta as the first retrieval he was told about.

Proposed explanation

For historians and members of CICAP, and for CISU researchers, the documents are most probably modern forgeries, lacking verifiable registry numbers and stamps; Roberto Pinotti, who received them, regards at least part of the material as authentic and cites expert analyses of paper and ink.

Sources

1. Roberto Pinotti, “The UFO Files of Mussolini” (account of the documents received in 1996), The Black Vault (analysis, pro-disclosure)
2. Skeptoid no. 900 (Brian Dunning): the story of the Magenta case (analysis, skeptical)
3. Wikipedia (it) – Incidente di Magenta (other)

On this site

People 8

• Roberto Pinotti
• Alfredo Lissoni
• Benito Mussolini
• Guglielmo Marconi
• Pius XII
• William Brophy Jr.
• David Grusch
• Luis Elizondo

Claims 4

• David Grusch: Claims that the oldest case he was informed of is a craft recovered in Italy in 1933 by Mussolini's… Unverifiable
• David Grusch: Claims that Pope Pius XII informed the United States through confidential channels of the existence of the… Unverifiable
• David Grusch: Describes the Magenta craft as a lenticular disc whose rim allegedly broke off, leaving a bell or acorn shape. Unverifiable
• Luis Elizondo: Maintains that Roswell may not have been the first event and that he has seen very convincing documentation… Unverifiable

Inconsistencies 2

• David Grusch: Magenta 1933: the Vatican absent from Pinotti's documents
• David Grusch: Magenta: the “bell” detail absent from the original documents

Official positions 1

• Vatican Apostolic Archive (2024): Asked about Grusch's thesis that Pius XII allegedly passed information about the Magenta…

Timeline 5

• 1933: Magenta 1933: the alleged retrieval of a disc, known only from anonymous papers
• Apr 1945: Unverified account: U.S. troops allegedly took the Magenta craft at Vergiate
• 1996: The anonymous papers on the “Gabinetto RS/33” reach Roberto Pinotti
• Jun 2024: The Vatican Apostolic Archive: no known source for Grusch's claim about Pius XII
• Jun 15, 2026: NewsNation: a Vatican source finds no trace of the Magenta case in the archives

Open in the interactive archive The whole section: Map of UAP and USO cases

UAPgrade's entries are compiled with artificial intelligence (three verifiers with opposing roles) and checked against the sources listed above: how we work. Have a document that changes this entry? Bring it to the Investigations Unit.