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RHINO HEADS AND horns stolen from the National Museum Archive in Dublin on Wednesday night had originally been removed from display and placed in storage because the museum had concerns about the possibility of theft, it has emerged.
On Wednesday night, a security guard at the archive was tied up by three masked men who loaded up the rhino heads and horns, which have a total estimated value of about €500,000.
Speaking to TheJournal.ie, head of collections at the National Muesum, Raghnall O’Floinn said that about a year and a half ago, the museum suspected there could be plans to steal the horns, which were on display at the Natural History Museum on Kildare Street.
“There were a number of people acting suspiciously around the museum and at the time there had already been around 50 or 60 thefts in Britain and elsewhere so we decided it was best to remove them from exhibition”, he said.
“The four mounted rhino heads that were on the rails were removed and we also had a large rhino on exhibition which we took the horn from because it would have been impossible to remove the entire thing.”
A sign in the museum apologising for the appearance of the hornless rhino tells visitors that horns have been removed “due to risk of theft”. It goes on to explain the “growing problem in museums as rhino horn is poached in the wold and stolen from museums and private collections in order to be sold illegally for medicinal properties”.
(Image: Elaad Yair/ Flickr)
Just last month police in the UK warned wildlife parks that they are being targeted by rhino poachers who had started to plot raids.
“In other museums that have a full rhino with the horn attatched people have gone in with sledgehammers to remove it and they’ve no interest in the rest of it,” O’Floinn said.
O’Floinn said thieves have even been known to steal replica horns that have replaced the real specimens, despite signage in the museums to indicate they’re not real.
“Obviously the trade is so lucrative that people are prepared to go to any extreme to get them, “he said.
The Natural History Museum is now in the course of putting replicas in place for the hornless rhino on display at the exhibition.
(Image: Elaad Yair/ Flickr)
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One day the Chinese are going to wake up and find that there are no more rhino’s left and that they still can’t get an erection.
Rinos come from Africia.
What’s a rino?
Its the o of a rin
Someone in China is still able to get it up, there’s billions of them!
The African Rhino is being killed to meet the demand for Horn in Vietnam and China. There is a totally unfounded belief that the ground up horn can cure disease and sexual impotence. It looks like the RHino will become extinct because Vietnamese and Chinese men have erection problems!!
I’ve got a horn reading this …..
So they were concerned about them being stolen, removed them and sent them to storage where there was only one security man guarding them. :/
I feel sorry for the poor security guard for being left in such a vulnerable position. Hopefully he isn’t too traumatised by the ordeal.
Sad about the horns but the people making the decisions seem to have been a bit foolish. They should have had replicas on standby and replaced them as soon as there was a threat and not tell anybody! At least that way if there was an attempt to steal the replica they would be able to protect the real ones better.
By cutting them off they made the job easier. Sure they may as well have put the kettle on for them.
If this is true then the thieves were aware of exactly where the horns were removed to, and that certainly wasn’t very secure given that they could walk in, disable one guard, and walk out with them. The management of the National Museum must surely bear some of the responsibility here, it was made clear to them that it was almost certain thieves would attempt to steal one of their valuable exhibits. Their solution was to remove the exhibit, the rhino horns, to a storage area of the museum and leave a note explaining why. If this was diamonds or rubies would they have done the same thing, knowing the thieves were coming, or would it not have been an idea to put them in a large safe, under lock and key?
I wonder how Ben Stiller would have faired in that situation?
What management? The museum doesn`t even have a Director and due to cutbacks the government have been
dragging their feet on appointing a new one.Expect to see a lot more of the same.Blame the government,penny
wise and foolish as usual.
@Aidan Someone in the National Museum took the decision to remove the rhino horns from display and, knowing they was likely to be an attempt to steal them, didn’t secure them. That person or persons is responsible.
If thieves can almost advertise that they’re coming to our National Museum and still manage to steal an exhibit what’s to stop them stealing more valuable exhibits like paintings or precious metals, our National treasures?
If there was a Director at the helm this could have been avoided but there isn`t and the museum is rudderless until those Philistines next door appoint one.
They should poison all rhino horns in museums, then let them steal them if they want. A few dead Chinese business men would put a damper on demand.
Of course nothing mentioned about the woeful state of security at our National Museum.
If there was a threat what on earth induced the museum authorities to return the original horns to the Rhino? It seems that only after the originals are stolen do they mention using replica horns.
When the authorities returned the original horns to the Rhino by any chance would they have introduced additional “security” measures? I wonder how easy it easy it would be to steal a €500,000 painting from the National Gallery.
Heads should roll for this. The public has a right to expect the highest standards of security protection for such national assets.
By the way I wonder how much the fin on that big shark in the museum is worth?
Woeful state of security? The natural history museum is in the government buildings campus. Government buildings have a round the clock Garda presence and an army barracks inside. Makes much more sense to have these valuable commodities here than in a warehouse covered by one guard, no?
That worked out well!!!
Sounds like a big cock up to me!!!
They knew where the horns were, they just tied up the guard who freed himself , uninjured after an appropriate time? All sounds a bit convenient for the thieves.Sounds like an inside job.
Was on the news recently about the traveller gangs stealing these rhino horns all over Europe apparently their making millions from this.
Just give him Viagra he will be fine
Did someone say irony
No don’t think so. I’l have another look though
Well any luck
Still can’t see it but i’m waiting for the smoke signals to come into view. :D
Lol!
What’s so funny? Or do you need to grow up
Whats with all the negativity towards micky? He found the story funny an laughed out loud! The red thumb brigade are getting out of hand on this, some people need to get a life instead of trying to put down everyone with a positive outlook on life. It sickens me to my core.
Its a simple question a man was tied up in a robbery. Rhino horns were stolen.
Oh was it the word Horn … Ah now i see yes in sixth class i guess it would get a giggle
You must be a barrel of laughs at parties
Now we know what a Rhino looks like de-horned, not very nice, is it?
Why didn’t they put up replicas as they said they would last year? Probably nobody will take responsibility….
I know where I’m not getting my wedding car from
Maybe if or when you grow up you might change your mind. Until then don’t get offended by everything you read.
robbing rhino horn from a museum, sounds like something Martin Cahill would have got up to
Is there an index of items in the archive available on the public domain?
People are sick.
Ohh the irony
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