Louvre Robbed In Broad Daylight As Thieves Nab French Crown Jewels Of ‘Incalculable’ Value

Thieves broke into the Louvre Museum in Paris Saturday morning, making off with priceless jewels of ‘incalculable’ value belonging to Emperor Napoleon, according to Le Parisien. 

The heist, which took just seven minutes, was pulled off using an angle grinder and a lift mechanism on a truck to break into the Galerie d’Apollon, a first-floor wing of the museum that houses a collection which include the French crown jewels. Nine items were stolen, according to Visegrad 24, however they left behind the largest gem in the emperor’s collection - a 140-carat diamond. 

After they used the angle grinder to breach a window, they broke into two display cases, snagged the loot, and escaped on motor scooters according to France’s interior minister Laurent Nuñez – who said that the jewelry had “patrimonial” and “historical” value that made it “priceless.”

“It was a major robbery,” said Nuñez, adding that investigators believe three or four thieves were involved, and it looked like an experienced team of veteran criminals pulled it off based on the precision and speed. 

One items nabbed but which dropped during the escape is believed to be a crown belonging to Napoleon’s wife, Empress Eugénie, which was discovered damaged outside the gallery. 

The museum issued a statement announcing that they would stay closed on Sunday as “a security measure and to preserve traces and clues for the investigation.”

Investigators are now poring through evidence, including security footage and objects abandoned by the thieves. According to the Paris prosecutor’s office, “the extent of the losses is currently being assessed.”

“Beyond their market value, the items have inestimable heritage and historical value,” the French Interior Ministry said in a statement.

The Louvre – home to over 33,000 works of art including Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, sees up to 30,000 visitors per day, and has been no stranger to a number of high-profile heists. In 1911, an employee made off with the Mona Lisa, only to be arrested two years later while trying to sell the painting in Italy. In 1976, three burglars broke into the museum at dawn and stole a 19th-century diamond-studded sword belonging to King Charles X of France. The thieves accessed the museum by climbing a metal scaffolding and smashing windows on the second floor. 

And in 1990, someone stole the Renoir painting, “Portrait of a Seated Woman” by cutting it from its frame on the third floor.