Culture minister Catherine Pégard reveals ‘national security plan’ following another major museum theft in France

France’s culture minister Catherine Pégard announced a “national security plan” on July 27 after a series of violent thefts from museums and churches, including the theft of French crown jewels from the Louvre on October 19, 2025. The latest incident occurred on July 23 at the Musée du Pays Châtillonnais in Burgundy, where two men smashed a display case in front of visitors and stole the 1-pound solid-gold “Lady of Vix” collar (circa 500BC), a key find from a Celtic princess’s grave discovered in 1953; Pégard said one suspect has been arrested. Pégard said more than 3,100 museums, monuments, and churches have been mapped as sensitive sites, and her ministry has budgeted €30 million over three years to improve security at local museums, while acknowledging “there is no risk zero.” Her plan includes 33 measures focused on infrastructure and training, and she rejected blanket solutions such as replacing masterpieces with copies or posting armed guards, noting that the Châtillonnais museum had already spent €150,000 over two years on gates and cameras before the daylight theft.

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