Stolen jewels back in the Dresden Green Vault

The jewels stolen from the Historic Green Vault in Dresden almost five years ago and later returned are back in Saxony's Treasury Museum. The Dresden State Art Collections (SKD) are displaying them unrestored in the condition in which the thieves returned them in December 2022.

"We are thrilled and very grateful, today is a wonderful day for us," said Saxony's Minister President Michael Kretschmer on behalf of Minister of Culture Barbara Klepsch (both CDU) at the presentation. SKD General Director Marion Ackermann spoke of a "particularly wonderful moment" to give the public the "opportunity to take a closer look".

In the special light of their jewelry display case, the pieces of jewelry sparkle like the others that did not fall into the hands of the jewel thieves. Damage is only visible on closer inspection. "At the moment, we assume that all the pieces can be restored," said Ackermann. The concept for this is being developed with international experts. However, they are still pieces of evidence in ongoing criminal proceedings relating to the criminal case, which also made international headlines.

Open to visitors from Wednesday

From Wednesday, visitors will be able to view them, with opening hours extended until 8.00 pm from Thursday. Access to the reconstructed rooms on the first floor of the Residenzschloss is only possible with timed tickets - SKD is now giving away 1,000 free tickets online.

The art theft on November 25, 2019 is considered one of the most spectacular in Germany. The perpetrators stole 21 unique pieces of historical jewelry made of diamonds and diamonds and caused over one million euros in damage. Five young men from the Remmo clan were sentenced to prison by the Dresden Regional Court in May 2023 for theft and arson of a getaway car in the underground car park of a residential building and an electricity distribution board.

At the end of the hearing of evidence, they had returned the majority of the loot through their defense lawyers - but there is still no trace of three prominent objects with large stones. Kretschmer and Ackermann hope that they too will be returned at some point and can be shown again in their old location.