Paris’ Louvre Museum Remains Closed After Sunday’s Brazen Daylight Crown Jewels Heist

The Louvre Museum in Paris, arguably the world’s most famous museum, will not reopen until at least Tuesday, and could remain closed as police continue their investigation into a daring and bold heist that took place during open hours Sunday.

According to police, four robbers, working in broad daylight, drove an electric ladder up to the side of the museum, and used angle grinders to enter the Apollo Gallery, which is located on the second floor of the Louvre. Using small chain saws and box cutters, the robbers smashed display cases in the gallery, stole a number of artifacts, and then dashed away on scooters toward one of the city’s highways.

The robbers did drop two of the artifacts as they were fleeing, but managed to get away with a list of essentially priceless pieces, many of which have sat in the Louvre for decades. Those include a tiara, earring, and necklace worn by Queen Marie-Amélie and Queen Hortense, and an emerald necklace from the parure of Empress Marie-Louise.

According to Parisian officials, the robbery took just seven minutes and was likely carried out by an experienced, professional team, which was able to get in and get out without capture despite alarms both on the exterior window and on the display cases being triggered.

Officials did not link the group to recent robberies in Paris, including a September break-in at the National Museum of History in Paris where thieves made off with $700,000 in gold, or a break-in at the Adrien Dubouché National Museum in the French town of Limoges that saw robbers make off with $11 million in porcelain art.

As police continue their investigation, the museum says it is refunding all tickets booked ahead of time for Monday.