Miracle at the Cognac-Jay Museum: Police Find Stolen Snuffboxes!

Sometimes miracles happen, like the one that just happened at the Cognacq-Jay Museum (3rd arrondissement), in the Marais. A little less than a year after the violent robbery that allowed four criminals to steal jewels valued at €1 million, most of them have been recovered. This should help cheer Parisians up a bit after the Louvre burglary, where the damage is estimated at €88 million.

On the morning of November 20, 2024, at 10:25 a.m., four hooded men armed with baseball bats and axes burst into this museum run by the City of Paris while visitors and officials were present. The criminals smashed display cases and stole seven precious objects, jeweled snuff boxes, before fleeing on a scooter. The stolen artifacts were on display as part of the "Pocket Luxury" exhibition, which featured small, sophisticated objects from the Age of Enlightenment, often made of gold and richly decorated with precious stones, mother-of-pearl, or enamel, including several major loans. The museum had to close the exhibition prematurely.

A few days ago (mid-October), five precious 18th-century tobacco boxes were recovered by the police. "Thanks to a thorough investigation conducted by the police, with the assistance of the Paris judicial police, five snuff boxes of great historical and heritage value were recovered and are now safe," said a press release from the prefecture. "These exceptional works had been loaned by the Louvre Museum, the English Royal Collections, and the Rosalinde & Arthur Gilbert collection on deposit at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London."