Four people stole this Wednesday, November 20, in the morning; at the Cognacq-Jay museum in Paris, in the presence of visitors, five collector’s boxes and snuff boxes by smashing the display case which contained them with an ax and baseball bats, we learned from a source close to the case.
The criminals, gloved, hooded and helmeted, operated around 10:30 a.m. while the museum was open to the public.
No injuries were reported, added this source, specifying that the stolen objects, “five historic boxes and snuff boxes”, had been loaned to the museum for the “Luxury in Pocket” exhibition.
The damage is currently being estimated.
The Paris prosecutor’s office, requested by the AFP, “confirmed having referred an investigation into armed robbery by an organized gang to the banditry repression brigade”.
In a press release, the Paris town hall announced the establishment of a “psychological and listening unit for the agents present who demonstrated great professionalism and an exemplary attitude in the face of this situation”.
This cell, added the town hall, “will also welcome visitors present at the time of the events if they wish”.
The city filed a complaint.
The Cognacq-Jay museum, located in the 3rd arrondissement of the capital, is hosting the “Pocket Luxury” exhibition until Sunday, which presents, according to the presentation file, “small precious objects reserved for the Age of Enlightenment enriched with stones hard or precious stones, covered with mother-of-pearl, porcelain or translucent enamels, sometimes decorated with miniatures.
This exhibition, which includes objects from the collection of Ernest Cognacq, is enriched with important loans – from prestigious institutions such as the Louvre Museum, the Museum of Decorative Arts in Paris, the Château de Versailles, the Palais Galliera, the Collections English royal houses or the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.
2024-11-20 17:22:00