The ‘missing artefacts’ from our collections

The Collections Inventory and Stock-taking Unit (Directorate for the Conservation of Monuments and Collections) records the disappearance or theft of cultural artefacts during stock-takes carried out at monuments. For over a century, the number of thefts has been mounting due to the fact that these artefacts are not subject to a statute of limitations . It is worth noting that they are public property, the fact that cultural property is not subject to any limitation period and is inalienable under Article 311-4-2 of the Criminal Code, which stipulates that theft is punishable by seven years’ imprisonment and a fine of 100,000 euros.

The Commission for the Inventory of State Art Deposits (CRDOA), of which the Centre des monuments nationaux is a member, has urged all institutions to improve their communication regarding the theft of deposited cultural property, following the example of the Office for Combating Trafficking in Cultural Property (OCBC) and the Brigade for the Suppression of Organised Crime (BRB). Following the example of the ‘Joconde’ database with its catalogue of missing items, or other public institutions such as the Palace of Versailles, the Centre des monuments nationaux is providing online access to its ‘Missing Items’ database.In order to take stock of the disappearance of cultural property from collections, an initial survey has been carried out, which involves checking police reports, updating them or filing new reports where no complaint has been lodged with the police, the gendarmerie or the BRB. Consequently, 563 items of cultural property have been recorded as stolen, of which 475 have been reported to the police. Of these, 114 items have been recovered or returned, bringing the number of stolen items of cultural property to 449. This figure is likely to change as further checks are carried out. As for cultural property for which no formal complaint has been lodged, the number is estimated at 2,427, of which 40 have formal complaints on file. Nearly 614 items have been recovered or returned, reducing their number to 1,813. The work of retrospective regularisation accounts for the majority of cases, many of which are very old. At the castle and ramparts of the city of Carcassonne, the Centre des monuments nationaux has reopened a complaint regarding a theft dating back to 1917, with the majority of cases relating to the period 1960–2000. A lengthy process of gathering information (documents, photographs, etc.) is required to compile these files due to the criteria that must be met in order to lodge a complaint. These criteria include the scientific significance of the cultural property (signature, listed status, etc.) and the existence of supporting documents or photographs (if these are missing, an analogue photograph or clear distinctive marks may suffice).

Obtaining a reactivated police report or the initiation of a criminal investigation results in the cultural object being entered into the OCBC’s TREMA database, which enables the police and gendarmerie to carry out surveillance at national level, and even internationally through INTERPOL.The aim of publishing the ‘Missing Artefacts’ online is to disseminate details of stolen cultural artefacts, extracted from the ‘Collectio’ inventory and management database . This section is integrated into the Collections website of the Centre des monuments nationaux alongside the ‘Tapestry’ section, as well as the collections of monuments such as the Hôtel de la Marine, Mont-Saint-Michel Abbey, Talcy Castle and Villa Cavrois.This spotlight helps to identify cultural artefacts more effectively during market monitoring of the art market. Market participants have access to this database for auctions, as do all stakeholders in the institutional heritage sector (museums, DRACs, etc.), conservators, researchers and the general public. They can report any information relating to these items or consider making voluntary returns, as has happened in the past (books from the library of Cluny Abbey, the crystal cross from the Palais du Tau, etc.). Explore the Centre des monuments nationaux’s collections of missing cultural property.