Two 18th-century jeweled snuffboxes, stolen in a 2024 axe-wielding heist at Paris's Musée Cognacq-Jay, have been restored and will go on display at London's Victoria and Albert Museum. The boxes, part of the Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Collection, were among seven luxury objects stolen; five were later recovered after an insurance payment, but a third snuffbox remains missing.
The restoration and redisplay highlight the ongoing threat to cultural heritage from organized crime and the painstaking work required to repair such damage. The heist targeted a high-profile exhibition of portable luxury, underscoring the vulnerability of even major museum loans and the complex international efforts needed to recover and conserve stolen artworks for the public.