Jewelry stolen from the Louvre Museum in Paris during a daring midday heist is valued at €88 million, according to the public prosecutor of the French capital.
Prosecutor Laure Beccuau told RTL Radio that the figure was “extraordinary,” but emphasized that the greatest loss was to France’s historical heritage. Among the stolen items were royal crowns and jewels gifted by both Napoleons to their wives.
The four thieves, equipped with electric cutting tools, carried out the theft in under eight minutes, just after the world’s most visited museum opened its doors on Sunday morning.
More than two days after the heist, authorities have not yet caught the perpetrators, while experts fear the jewels may already be lost forever.
Beccuau expressed hope that publicizing the jewelry’s value might persuade the thieves not to destroy them, noting that the culprits “would not profit the full amount” if they had “the bad idea of melting them down.”
The stolen pieces, previously described as “priceless,” include:
- A diamond and emerald necklace gifted by Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte to his wife,
- A necklace belonging to Empress Eugénie, wife of Napoleon III,
- Several items once owned by Queen Marie-Amélie.
Investigators discovered a damaged crown once belonging to Empress Eugénie along the escape route — apparently dropped by the thieves in their haste to flee.
