Eight stolen pieces of jewelry, seven minutes from start to finish, four thieves posing as construction workers, two display cases smashed, and one “mobile freight elevator” used to gain entry. These are the figures of the stunning jewelry heist that struck the famed Louvre in Paris — the most visited art museum in the world — around 9:30am on Sunday. Out of 35,000 objects and artifacts on display to choose from, the burglars focused singularly on pieces from the “Napoleon Jewels” and “French Crown Jewels” collections. The French Ministry of Culture has confirmed that two brooches, two crowns, two pairs of earrings, and two necklaces were stolen. While the monetary value of the jewels is undoubtedly high, it’s the historical and cultural significance that commentators are calling priceless and “inestimable.” Here’s what we know so far:
The heist: The team of thieves drove up to the side of the museum in what police described as a “mobile freight elevator” equipped with a metal ladder on the back that was extended up to a window, according to the Paris police. “They deployed the freight elevator, securing the surroundings with construction cones, before accessing the second floor, in the Apollo gallery, by breaking the window with an angle grinder,” according to the police statement. “Inside, they then smashed two display cases, ‘Napoleon jewels’ and ‘French crown jewels,’ using the angle grinder and stole numerous pieces of high-value jewelry.”
It all happened in mere minutes: Two of the thieves arrived at the museum in the mobile freight elevator, one wearing a yellow vest and the other an orange vest, according to police. Two accomplices arrived at the museum at the same time on what police described as “T-max vehicles” or sports motorbikes. “The staff on site, upon seeing what was happening, took to safety,” according to the police statement. “An alarm was triggered at 9:37 a.m. The perpetrators exited through the window by going back down the freight elevator before fleeing on the two motorbikes at 9:38 a.m.”
Diamonds & sapphires & emeralds (oh my): French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez, in an interview on local radio, said the value of the items would be “inestimable.” According to the French Ministry of Culture, among the items stolen was a diadem, or crown, from the collection of Queen Marie-Amelie and Queen Hortense; an emerald necklace and a pair of emerald earrings from the collection of Marie-Louise, Napoleon’s second wife; and a large bow brooch from Empress Eugénie’s bodice. The thieves either dropped or abandoned two pieces of jewelry as they exited the museum, including one of Empress Eugénie’s crowns, according to the Paris Prosecutor’s Office, which said it is investigating the case as an aggravated theft by an organized gang and criminal conspiracy to commit a crime.
An expert weighs in: Nathalie Abbou Vidal has spent her life surrounded by jewels that have lived through revolutions, crowned emperors and survived wars. As one of France’s leading jewelry historians, she teaches at the prestigious Haute Ecole de Joaillerie and advises major auction houses and the French courts. She told ABC News the idea that these treasures — “too important, too full of history, too much a part of who we are” — could be dismantled for profit is almost unthinkable. “The weight of the gold is nothing. The diamonds — they’re old European stones, centuries old. You can’t just break them apart,” she said. Even the black market, she believes, will struggle to erase the identity of the pieces. “They’re not just objects. They’re part of our heritage.”
Mon dieu! Well that’s sure to wipe the smile right off Mona Lisa’s face. The thing is, as the jewelry historian notes (sidenote: WHY didn’t I consider that seriously as a career?!), what are the thieves gonna do with the hot loot now? These are highly recognizable pieces, so while they’re probably worth more money as the treasured gems of heritage they are, trying to sell them as is would be an immediate tip off. The more plausible, yet devastating scenario, is that in order to make money off these jewels, they have to be deconstructed into parts. Even the larger stones, I think, would have to be broken down — sacrilege, I know! — in order to hide their provenance. Which is why art recovery experts have been saying that if the jewels aren’t recovered between 24-48 hours after the theft, then it’s all over. The criminals may be caught, but it’s most likely a lost cause for the gems after that point. So the clock started at 9:30am Sunday, local Paris time. That puts 48 hours later at… Merde.
PS — As of this writing, the Daily Mail has restrained themselves from writing the headline “Priceless jewels stolen from the Louvre two weeks after Duchess Meghan visits Paris!” Let’s see how long they last.
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