Precious jewels worth £855m stolen in spectacular heist at historic Dresden museum

The Green Vault is one of the oldest art museums in the world - REX
The Green Vault is one of the oldest art museums in the world - REX

Antique diamond jewellery worth as much as €1bn (£855m) was stolen in a spectacular robbery at one of Germany’s most famous museums on Monday.

A gang of thieves broke into Dresden’s renowned Green Vault in the early hours of the morning and escaped with three 18th century sets of diamond jewellery.

Roland Wöller, the regional interior minister, described the robbery as “an attack on the cultural identity of all Saxons,”.

There are fears the jewellery, described as “priceless” and “irreplaceable” by the German authorities, will be melted down so the gold and diamonds can be sold on the black market.

Police were combing the vault on Monday but are believed to have little clue to the identity of those behind the heist, which appears to have been meticulously planned.

andatory Credit: Photo by MATTHIAS HIEKEL/EPA-EFE/REX (10484506a) (FILE) - The first visitors eye the restored White Gold room of the historic Green Vault in the Royal Palace in Dresden, Germany, 28 March 2006 (reissued 25 November 2019). According to police, burglars have broken into the Green Vault museum. Burglary at Green Vault in Dresden, Germany - 28 Mar 2006 - Credit: MATTHIAS HIEKEL/EPA-EFE/REX
The Green Vault is one of the oldest art museums in the world Credit: MATTHIAS HIEKEL/EPA-EFE/REX

The robbers  got round the Green Vault’s sophisticated security system by setting fire to a power relay under the nearby Augustus Bridge.

When the electricity supply to the musuem was cut so the fire could be extinguished, they broke in through a side window.

The Green Vault, a baroque treasure house in the former royal palace of the House of Wettin, is one of the oldest art museums in Europe. Founded in 1723 by Augustus the Strong, Prince-Elector of Saxony, it was destroyed in the Second World War but restored in 2006.

This Tuesday April 9, 2019 photo, shows a part of the collection at White Silver Room inside Dresden's Green Vault in Dresden. Authorities in Germany say thieves have carried out a brazen heist at Dresden’s Green Vault, one of the world’s oldest museum containing priceless treasures from around the world. (Sebastian Kahnert/dpa via AP) - Credit:  Sebastian Kahnert/DPA
The Green Vault contains many priceless treasures Credit: Sebastian Kahnert/DPA

Its treasures include the “Moor with Emeralds”, a golden statute encrusted with emeralds, rubies and sapphires, and a cabinet carved from pure amber that was a gift from the King Frederick the Great of Prussia.

But the thieves are believed to have ignored bulkier items and specifically targetted the three sets of diamond jewellery.

The Green Vault also houses the former Saxon crown jewels, but its most famous gemstones are not believed to be missing.

The 41-carat Dresden Green Diamond, believed to be the largest green diamond in the world, is currently on loan to the Metropolitan Musuem in New York.

The Dresden White, a 49.7 carat diamond, and a 648-carat sapphire that was a gift from Tsar Peter I of Russia are also believed to be safe.

There were unconfirmed reports that security cameras inside the museum may still have been operative, and that footage could help identify the perpetrators.

Mandatory Credit: Photo by FILIP SINGER/EPA-EFE/REX (10484532x) Police Forensics officers investigate the area near the Dresden Castle, in Dresden, Saxony, Germany, 25 November 2019. Dresden's Treasury Green Vault was broken into early 25 November. According to the police, the amount of damage is still unclear. Burglary in Dresden's Treasury Green Vault, Germany - 25 Nov 2019 - Credit: FILIP SINGER/EPA-EFE/REX
Police forensic officers were combing the site for any clue to the identity of the perpetrators Credit: FILIP SINGER/EPA-EFE/REX

Police rushed to the scene as soon as the alarm was raised and the entrances to Dresden’s motorways were blocked, but it appears the thieves had already escaped.

The stolen jewellery is believed to be too famous to sell intact even on the black market, leading to fears it could be broken up.

“These perpetrators know most works of art can’t be sold as a whole, but can be broken down into their components to make money. But once the works are melted down or disassembled, the art is destroyed forever,” Arthur Brand, an art detective, told Spiegel magazine.

Other theories are that the jewellery may have been stolen to order for a private collector, or that the thieves could demand a ransom for its safe return.

“Not only the state art collections were robbed, but the Saxon people,” Michael Kretschmer, the regional prime minister of Saxony said. “The treaures that can be found in the Green Vault and the Royal Palace have been hardwon by the people of Saxony over many centuries.

"You can not understand the history of our land, of our state, without the Green Vault and the Saxon state art collections.”