In a daring seven-minute strike, thieves used a basket lift to gain access to the Louvre Museum on Sunday morning, and while tourists were already inside, they forced open a window, smashed display cabinets and made off with “priceless” jewellery, France’s interior minister said.
The world’s most visited museum was closed for the day as police closed the gates and turned visitors away during an investigation.
“There was a robbery this morning at a store opening Louvre MuseumCulture Minister Rachida Dati wrote on the X website. The museum cited “exceptional reasons” for the closure, and no casualties were reported.
At approximately 9:30 a.m., a number of intruders forced open a window, stole jewelry from the display cases and fled on two wheels, according to the Ministry of Interior. Forensic work is underway and an accurate inventory of the stolen items is being compiled, she said, adding that the items have “priceless” historical value. Mr. Dati and Mr. Nunez were on site with museum leadership.
Video from the scene showed confused tourists being escorted from the glass pyramid and its surrounding squares, while officers closed the iron gates and blocked off nearby streets along the Seine River.
Interior Minister Laurent Nunez described the incident as a “grand theft,” saying the intruders entered from outside using a basket lift. He told France Inter radio that the robbery took seven minutes and the thieves used a disc cutter to cut the boards. “It’s clear the team has done some exploring,” he said.
The theft took place in the Galerie d’Apollon, a domed hall in the Denon wing that displays part of the French Crown Jewels under a ceiling painted by the court artist of King Louis XIV, according to the ministry.
French daily newspaper Le Parisien reported that the thieves entered through the facade facing the Seine River, where construction is taking place, and used a freight elevator to reach the exhibition.
After smashing the windows, they reportedly took nine pieces from Napoleon and the Empress’s jewelery collection. The newspaper reported that a stolen jewel was later found outside the museum, adding that it is believed that this piece is the crown of Empress Eugenie and that it is broken.
Security and staffing at the Louvre Museum in the spotlight
Security around the marquee works remains tight. The Mona Lisa is protected by bulletproof glass and a custom high-tech display system as part of wider anti-theft measures throughout the museum.
Staffing and protection were points of tension at the Louvre. The museum was delayed in opening during a Staff strike in June due to overcrowding and chronic staff shortages. Unions warned that mass tourism strains security and visitor management.
It was not immediately clear whether staffing levels played any role in Sunday’s robbery.
In January, President Emmanuel Macron announced a ten-year “New Louvre Renaissance” plan — nearly €700 million to modernize infrastructure, ease congestion and give Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece its own dedicated gallery by 2031 — but workers say relief has been slow to get to the ground.
Other European museums have been robbed
The theft, which occurred less than half an hour after the doors opened, echoes recent raids on European museums.
In 2019, thieves smashed glass windows at the Green Vault in Dresden and stole royal diamond-encrusted jewelery worth hundreds of millions of euros. In 2017, thieves at the Bode Museum in Berlin stole a 100-kilogram (220-pound) solid gold coin. In 2010, a lone intruder broke into the Museum of Modern Art in Paris and escaped with five paintings, including one by Picasso.
The Louvre Museum has a long history of thefts and attempted burglaries. The most famous incident occurred in 1911, when Mona Lisa It disappeared from its frame, and was stolen by Vincenzo Peruggia, a former employee who hid inside the museum and emerged with the painting under his coat. It was recovered two years later in Florence, an event that helped make Leonardo da Vinci’s painting the most famous work of art in the world.
Home to more than 33,000 works spanning antiquities, sculpture, and painting—from Mesopotamia, Egypt, and the classical world to European artists—Louvre attractions include the Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo, and the winged Triumph of Samothrace. The museum can attract up to 30,000 visitors per day.