Not just the Louvre: Museums across France are ripe targets for thieves

Museums across France face a surge in thefts, with criminals stealing valuable art, coins, and relics, inspired partly by the high-profile 2025 Louvre crown jewels heist.Experts link the crimes to social media exposure, rising precious metal prices, and copycat thieves emboldened by weak legal responses and visible museum vulnerabilities.French authorities have proposed 33 security measures, but local museums remain vulnerable, with staff traumatised and challenges in hiring security personnel continuing.PARIS – When thieves broke into a museum on the French Riviera on Sept 8 and made off with two paintings by impressionist master Pierre-Auguste Renoir, President Emmanuel Macron had just been a few kilometres away presiding over a conference about how to save the art of filmmaking.The robbery, the latest in a string of thefts since the sensational heist of crown jewels at the Louvre in October 2025, suggested that France has a bigger challenge protecting its artistic treasures.Get unlimited access to exclusive stories and incisive insights from the ST newsroom