Upper Austrian museums review security after Vienna jewel theft

Upper Austrian museums are reviewing security for valuable artworks after a diamond necklace was stolen from Vienna’s Museum of Applied Arts, ORF reported.

Two men entered the museum with a hammer last Thursday, smashed a display case and stole the necklace. The theft has also raised vigilance among museum operators in Upper Austria, where institutions hold valuable works by Egon Schiele and Gustav Klimt at the Lentos art museum, as well as archaeological and prehistoric objects at the Linz Castle Museum.

The objects at the Linz Castle Museum were given additional protection during a recent reorganisation, said Alfred Weidinger, scientific managing director of Landes-Kultur GmbH. He said some individual objects were particularly valuable, but not worth nearly as much as the items stolen in Vienna.

The artworks are kept in display cases fitted with structure-borne sound detectors. If a detector is triggered, an alarm sounds in each room. Staff are trained to respond immediately, Weidinger said.

Upper Austrian museums are generally cautious about accepting loans worth millions of euros because the security systems required are extensive and costly, according to Weidinger.

The suspects in Vienna remain at large. The museum’s security measures have also faced strong criticism.