Museum report·Dresden
Foiled at the gate: suspected thieves chased from Dresden's Zwinger before dawn
Two men suspected of plotting a break-in at Dresden's Zwinger palace complex fled after a security guard spotted them in the early hours of 27 October, with police believing the world-renowned porcelain collection may have been their target. No objects were taken and no forced entry has been confirmed.
Police have heightened security around Dresden's Zwinger, the Baroque palace complex that houses one of the world's great porcelain collections, after two men suspected of plotting a break-in were chased off by a security guard early on Tuesday morning. The incident took place between 6.10 and 6.30am on 27 October, when the two unidentified men entered the Zwinger's open courtyard through the Crown Gate, according to Saxony's criminal police and the public prosecutor's office. Investigators believe the men were carrying tools intended for a break-in.
The men fled back through the gate when approached by the guard. Police suspect the porcelain collection may have been their target, but no specific objects have been identified, and it has not been confirmed that the men attempted to force entry. Police are now seeking witnesses, and the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, which manages the city's state art collections, has increased security at its museums. According to German broadcaster MDR, the porcelain collection was already closed for construction work at the time of the incident.
The scare follows a series of security worries in Dresden. In November 2019, burglars stole priceless royal jewels from the city's Green Vault museum, and five men later received six-year prison sentences. More recently, in January, the state collections suffered a cyberattack, with German media suggesting thieves may have been interested in two valuable pieces of Chinese porcelain. Earlier this year, warnings about a plot to steal a rare Chinese porcelain bowl and a dragon vase reportedly led to some objects being moved for safekeeping, although prosecutors say there is no concrete evidence linking this week's attempted break-in to the cyberattack.
The attempted robbery comes amid heightened anxiety about museum security across Europe. Earlier this month, thieves stole an estimated $100 million in jewels from the Louvre in Paris. The incidents have prompted renewed questions about how well Europe's museums can protect their collections.
