French museum gets targeted after heist at Louvre
(MENAFN) Another museum in France has fallen victim to theft, according to reports, just a day after a widely publicized jewelry robbery at the Louvre. Nearly 2,000 valuable coins were stolen from the Denis Diderot House of Enlightenment in Langres, a town in northeastern France.
The incident adds to a growing list of museum thefts in recent months, sparking criticism from opposition figures who accuse the government of failing to protect the nation’s cultural treasures.
The robbery was discovered on Monday morning when museum employees found the entrance door forced open and a display case smashed. The stolen collection reportedly contained 1,633 silver and 319 gold coins dating back to the 18th and 19th centuries, with an estimated total value of around €90,000 ($104,000). These coins were part of the museum’s “treasure” collection, originally uncovered by workers during a renovation project in 2011.
According to the local mayor’s office, the break-in appeared carefully planned, as the thieves selectively took only certain valuables while leaving other artifacts untouched. Authorities have since hired a private security firm to guard the premises overnight while security upgrades are implemented at the temporarily closed museum.
This latest heist follows two other high-profile incidents earlier in the month. On October 16, gold nuggets valued at €1.5 million were stolen from the National Museum of Natural History in Paris. Just days later, on October 19, eight pieces of jewelry from the Napoleonic era were taken during a daytime break-in at the Louvre.
The Louvre robbery provoked intense backlash, with critics accusing the museum’s leadership of neglecting security. Director Laurence Des Cars faced claims that her staffing choices prioritized diversity over experience.
Marion Marechal, a European Parliament member, said France had become the “laughingstock of the world” following the “ridiculous theft,” calling for the immediate resignation of Des Cars and the museum’s security chief Dominique Buffin, whom she alleged was appointed under a feminization policy.
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