The heist occurred in the early hours of Thursday morning, with the suspects triggering the alarm around 3:15 a.m. after smashing a window to gain entry. They proceeded directly to the historical gallery, where they seized two exceptionally rare Chinese porcelain dishes from the 14th and 15th centuries and an 18th-century Chinese vase before fleeing the scene.
Although security guards alerted police, who arrived promptly, the thieves had already escaped. Limoges public prosecutor Emilie Abrantes has opened an investigation into "aggravated theft of cultural property exhibited in a French museum, committed in a group and with damage to property."
The city's mayor, Emile Roger Lombertie, acknowledged that while the security system functioned as intended, it "may need to be reviewed." He suggested the theft was likely a commissioned crime, stating, "It is likely that collectors are giving orders to steal these items and are turning to high-level criminals."
The targeted museum is home to approximately 18,000 works and boasts the world's largest public collection of Limoges porcelain.
This incident is the latest in a worrying series of high-profile thefts targeting French cultural institutions. In November 2024, two major heists occurred just a day apart: one at the Cognacq-Jay Museum in Paris, where thieves used axes and bats to smash displays in broad daylight, and another at the Hieron Museum, where armed robbers stole jewelry worth millions of euros.