Two thieves entered the Strängnäs Cathedral in south-eastern Sweden on Monday 30 July, and escaped with two royal crowns and a rickshaw before fleeing in a motorboat moored beneath the church.
"The alarm went off when the burglars smashed the security glass and stole the artefacts," Catharina Frojd, a spokeswoman for the 14th century cathedral, told The Associated Press.
Hope for recovering the regal artefacts seems slim as police dispatched helicopters, cars and boats in an attempt to catch the thieves.
“It’s 1-0 to them right now,” police spokesman Thomas Agnevik told reporters.
“By boat you can reach Mälaren, Köping or Arboga in the west, or Västerås, Eskilstuna or Stockholm if you drive east.”
Police did not reveal the value of the stolen artefacts, however the cultural value to the country’s history is indeterminable. Reverend Christopher Lundgren, dean of Strängnäs Cathedral told The New York Times the robbery is “a theft from Swedish society.”
“This is part of the national cultural heritage,” he said, noting that the gemstones mounted in the crowns may not have been of great value in grade or cut, however the history attached to them is of great importance to Sweden.
“The stones applied to these crowns are not diamonds, they are rock crystals and pearls,” Lundgren said.
One of the crowns belonged to Karl IX, who reigned over Sweden from 1604-1611. The other crown belonged to his wife Kristina. The artefacts were on public display and staff were on site, however nobody was injured during the incident.
Other artefacts uncovered
Meanwhile, some ancient artefacts dating back 2,800 years have been uncovered by archaeologists in Kazakhstan in an excavation of burial sites in the Tarabagtai Mountains.
More than 3,000 gold items were found in the burial mound and are believed to have belonged to royal and wealthy members of the Saka people.
Professor Zainolla Samashev, in charge of the excavations, told The Daily Mail: “A large number of valuable finds in this burial mound let us believe a man and a woman are buried here - the reigning persons or people who belonged to the elite of Saka society.”
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