Thieves steal 210-kilogram Dalí art book from Issoire museum in central France

The museum burglary in Auvergne

During the early hours between Sunday 4 October and Monday 5 October 2026, thieves broke into the Issoire Contemporary Art Centre in the Puy-de-Dôme department in central France. The perpetrators targeted a single display, extracting a unique 210-kilogram volume titled L'Apocalypse. The Clermont-Ferrand public prosecutor's office confirmed that the thieves bypassed building security systems and removed the massive piece overnight. Authorities have not yet disclosed the exact tools or extraction route used to haul the artwork out of the facility. Forensic teams from the Gendarmerie research section in Clermont-Ferrand took charge of the scene on Monday morning to gather physical evidence, open a criminal investigation, and trace the escape route.

A collaborative artistic production

The stolen volume represents a multi-year collaborative project edited between 1958 and 1961 by Auvergne publisher Joseph Forêt. Conceived as a total work of art, the project brought together fourteen prominent literary and visual figures of the post-war era. Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dalí sculpted the cast-bronze cover, which accounts for 150 kilograms of the total mass. Writers Jean Cocteau and Jean Giono and painter Bernard Buffet contributed original texts and paintings alongside other creators. The physical object is adorned with gold ornaments and precious stones, bringing its total weight to 210 kilograms. Due to its scale and materials, promoters and its owner catalog the volume as the heaviest and most expensive book in the world.

Cultural reaction and ownership

The volume is owned by art collector Christian Karoutzos, who placed the work on public display at the Issoire art centre. Following the theft, Karoutzos spoke to regional broadcaster ICI Pays d'Auvergne on Monday afternoon, describing the piece as an irreplaceable cultural treasure. He noted that the manuscript represents a singular synthesis of mid-century French literature and visual art assembled under Forêt's direction. Karoutzos characterized the loss of the manuscript not only as a personal blow but as a direct attack on French heritage.

It is a cathedral-like work, masterful, unique in the world. Tonight they assassinated France, they assassinated French heritage.

Investigative theories on the black market

The Gendarmerie investigation is focusing on two contrasting hypotheses regarding why the heavy volume was taken. One primary theory involves a targeted theft commissioned by a private collector, given that an iconic, one-of-a-kind piece cannot be sold through ordinary art market channels. The alternative theory assumes the thieves were motivated by raw materials rather than artistic value, raising concerns that the group may scrap the book to melt down the 150-kilogram bronze cover for sale by weight. Investigators in Clermont-Ferrand continue to review surveillance data and monitor metal recycling channels while coordinating with law enforcement networks.