Rare Gold Nuggets Worth $700,000 Stolen From Paris’ Natural History Museum in Brazen Heist Discovered in their pure metallic form, the specimens were taken by “an extremely professional team,” the museum’s director said Ella Feldman - Daily Correspondent Get our newsletter! Thieves stole $700,000 worth of rare gold samples from Paris’ National Museum of Natural History in an overnight heist, officials announced Wednesday. “This comes at a critical time for cultural institutions, particularly museums,” the National Museum of Natural History says in a statement quoted by NBC News’ Peter Guo and Jean-Nicholas Fievet. It’s unclear whether the alarms were operating correctly when the theft took place, the source adds. Earlier this month, three Chinese porcelain pieces worth about $11 million—all of which had been designated as “national treasures,” per AFP—were stolen from the Adrien Dubouché National Museum in Limoges.