Editor’s Note
This article reports on a major royal jewelry theft at the Louvre Museum in Paris, with estimated losses of €88 million (approximately 146 billion won), as confirmed by Paris Prosecutor Laure Beccuau.
A royal jewelry theft at the Louvre Museum in Paris, France, is estimated to have caused losses worth approximately 146 billion won (€88 million). According to Reuters, Paris Prosecutor Laure Beccuau stated on RTL Radio on the 21st (local time):
She added:
The incident occurred on the morning of the 19th at the Apollo Gallery of the Louvre. Four masked robbers used a mechanical ladder truck to enter the balcony, stole eight pieces of jewelry in just 7 minutes, and fled on a motorcycle. Police investigation revealed they used portable power tools to break open display cases and seize the artifacts.
The stolen artifacts include an emerald and diamond necklace gifted by Emperor Napoleon I to Empress Marie Louise, and a diamond tiara worn by Empress Eugénie de Montijo, wife of Napoleon III. The eight pieces are known to contain approximately 8,700 diamonds, 34 sapphires, 38 emeralds, and over 200 pearls.
However, Empress Eugénie’s diamond crown, decorated with 1,345 diamonds and 56 emeralds, was found damaged near the museum.
French police are currently tracking the suspects’ movements through CCTV footage and fingerprint analysis. The stolen jewels were not separately insured. The French Culture Ministry explained that due to high insurance premiums and low accident rates in standard storage environments, the state often acts as its own insurer.
Louvre Director Laurence des Cars is scheduled to appear before the French Senate’s Culture Committee on the same day to answer questions regarding security measures.
Meanwhile, the Louvre Museum reopened on the 22nd, three days after the incident, but the Apollo Gallery where the theft occurred remains closed.