In brief
In a brazen daylight heist, thieves stole jewellery worth €88 million from the Louvre Museum, including historical pieces once owned by French royalty. With critical security failures at the museum, experts fear the artefacts may have already been sold or melted down. The incident raises alarms about the vulnerabilities in protecting France's cultural heritage.
Jewellery stolen from the Louvre in Paris in a daring daylight robbery has been valued at 88 million euros (£76m; $102m), a French public prosecutor has said, citing the museum's curator.
Laure Beccuau told RTL radio the sum was 'extraordinary' but said the greater loss was to France's historical heritage. Crown jewels and pieces gifted by two Napoleons to their wives were among the items taken.
Thieves wielding power tools took less than eight minutes to make off with the loot shortly after the world's most-visited museum opened on Sunday morning.
With the thieves having not been caught more than two days on from the heist, experts fear the jewellery will already be long gone.
Ms Beccuau said she hoped announcing the estimated worth of the jewellery would make the robbers think twice and not destroy them.
She added the thieves would not pocket the full windfall if they had 'the very bad idea of melting down these jewels'.
The items taken, previously described as having inestimable worth, include a diamond and emerald necklace Emperor Napoleon gave to his wife, a tiara worn by Empress Eugenie, the wife of Napoleon III, and several pieces previously owned by Queen Marie-Amelie.
French President Emmanuel Macron described the robbery as an attack on France's heritage, and security measures have been tightened around the country's cultural institutions in response to the incident.
Investigators are pursuing a professional team of thieves, given the quick and organized manner of the heist. Experts believe they have a short window to recover the stolen items before they're lost for good.
