Egyptian queen’s 673-diamond necklace stolen in Vienna smash-and-grab raid

Key Points:

• Austrian police are searching for two men who allegedly stole a 200-carat platinum necklace adorned with 673 diamonds from the Museum of Applied Arts (MAK) in Vienna; the necklace once belonged to Egyptian royalty.
• The suspects broke a glass display case with a hammer during museum opening hours after purchasing tickets, then fled the scene, prompting a city-wide police search including tracking dogs.
• The stolen necklace, part of a Van Cleef & Arpels exhibition, was historically owned by Queen Consort Nazli of Egypt and sold at Sotheby’s in 2015 for $4.3 million; the exhibition has been temporarily closed following the theft.
• This theft is part of a recent wave of high-profile art and jewellery heists across Europe, including incidents at the Louvre in Paris, the Treasure of Villena in Spain, and museums in Sicily and northern Italy.
• Authorities suspect the theft may have been a contract job linked to a criminal gang, and they have released security images of the suspects to the public in hopes of gathering information.