Two thieves steal historic $5.1 million Van Cleef & Arpels necklace from Vienna museum
During opening hours on Aug 27, two men broke a display case at Vienna’s Museum of Applied Arts and fled with a Van Cleef & Arpels diamond necklace valued at about US$4 million.
On Aug 27, two unidentified thieves broke the glass case of a Van Cleef & Arpels necklace at Vienna’s Museum of Applied Arts during public visiting hours and ran away on foot. CCTV captured two slender men, about 175 cm tall, with dark hair and beards, dressed in black attire and sneakers. The necklace, originally made for the 1939 marriage of Princess Fawzia of Egypt and Crown Prince Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, is set in platinum and studded with 673 diamonds weighing 200 carats, with Sotheby’s estimating its worth between US$3.6 million and US$4.6 million.
This robbery is the most valuable art theft in the city since a €50 million gold Saliera was stolen in 2003. The incident follows other high-profile museum thefts, including a $100 million jewel robbery at the Louvre in 2025. The museum’s “Prime Pieces” exhibition, curated with Van Cleef & Arpels, will remain open through Sept 27, but the affected display is now closed to visitors.
Why it matters
The theft highlights vulnerabilities in museum security and involves a priceless piece of royal jewelry.
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