Four people stole five collector’s boxes and snuff boxes from the Cognacq-Jay museum in Paris on Wednesday morning, in the presence of visitors, by smashing the display case which contained them with an ax and baseball bats, we learned from a source. close to the file.
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 and sophisticated objects from the Age of Enlightenment, in gold , enriched with hard stones 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.
published on November 20 at 5:45 p.m., AFP
