A heist was reported at the world-famous Louvre museum in France on Sunday morning, prompting a shutdown for the day. According to police, an unknown number of thieves broke into the Louvre Museum on a scooter carrying small chainsaws and fled with jewellery.
AFP reported, citing sources, that they used a goods lift to reach the room they targeted, and the value of the stolen jewellery is still being evaluated.
Museum shuts down amid investigation
In a post on X, France's culture minister Rachida Dati said, "A robbery took place this morning at the opening of the @MuseeLouvre. No injuries to report. I am on site alongside the museum teams and the police. Investigations are underway."
According to French daily Le Parisien, the suspects reportedly entered the Louvre at around 9:30 a.m., the most visited museum and former palace in the world, through the facade facing the Seine, where construction is currently taking place. It added that they used a freight elevator to enter the targeted room in the Apollo Gallery. After breaking windows, the robbers stole "nine pieces from the jewellery collection of Napoleon and the Empress.” The whole heist took merely 7 minutes.
From Mona Lisa to Renaissance Armour
There has been a long history of thefts and attempted robberies at the renowned museum. The disappearance of the Mona Lisa from its frame in 1911 was one of the most well-known thefts.
Vincenzo Peruggia, the thief, hid inside the museum and took the painting with him when he left, wearing his coat. Two years later, in Florence, the search for the painting came to an end, and Leonardo da Vinci's portrait became the most famous piece of art in the world. In 1983, two pieces of armour from the Renaissance were stolen, marking another well-known theft. They were retrieved almost forty years later.
The legacy of the Louvre includes 30,000 visitors, 33,000 priceless artefacts, and international recognition.
The museum can accommodate up to 30,000 visitors per day and houses more than 33,000 unique and valuable antiquities, sculptures, paintings, and other items. Mesopotamia, Egypt, and the looting of the Napoleonic era have left their mark on it. Among its main attractions are the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo, and the Winged Victory of Samothrace.
