“Two snuff boxes belonging to the Louvre Museum and loaned to the Cognacq-Jay Museum were stolen” Wednesday, November 20, in the morning, announces the Ministry of Culture. A robbery “of great violence”, Paris town hall had described a few hours earlier in a press release. The robber(s) entered the municipal establishment in the morning while visitors and agents were present.
Four hooded men, in possession of baseball bats and axes, burst into the museum at 10:25 a.m., franceinfo learned from a source close to the matter. Visitors and agents were present. They broke windows, stole snuff boxes adorned with gold and diamonds before fleeing on two scooters, said the same source.
“The Louvre Museum indicates that, during this theft, two works belonging to its collections and loaned to the Cognacq-Jay Museum as part of the 'Luxe in Pocket' exhibition were stolen”adds the Ministry of Culture. “These are two particularly important snuff boxes dating from the 18th century, made respectively by Johann Christian Neuber and Daniel Baudesson.”
“No injuries were reported. The municipal police and the national police intervened immediately following the events”specifies the town hall. For its part, the Paris prosecutor's office, contacted by franceinfo, indicates that it has “referred an investigation to the BRB for armed robbery by an organized gang to the detriment of the Cognacq-Jay museum”.
The damage is estimated at one million euros, indicated a source close to the matter. The perpetrators of this theft have not been identified and have not yet been arrested. The museum's videos will be used by investigators.
The Minister of Culture, Rachida Dati, “condemns with the greatest firmness this criminal act which harms our heritage”. “Considering the historical value and the precious nature of these pieces, the Louvre Museum and all the services of the Ministry of Culture will facilitate the rapid identification of these two objects of art as part of the ongoing investigations in order, in particular , to make it difficult to conceal them”.
A psychological and listening unit was set up by the City of Paris for the agents and visitors who were on site at the time of the events. The town hall indicates that it has filed a complaint and is “at the disposal of the police headquarters so that the perpetrators of the acts can be identified”. The museum, which presents a collection of 18th-century works and art objects from the legacy of Ernest Cognacq, co-founder of the La Samaritaine department stores in Paris, has since closed.
