Can France Get Back Its Priceless Historic Jewels – Or Is It Too Late?
Law enforcement in France are making every effort to locate irreplaceable jewels stolen from the Louvre Museum in a audacious broad daylight theft, yet authorities are concerned it might be impossible to save them.
At the heart of Paris on Sunday, robbers broke into the most popular museum globally, taking eight precious artifacts then fleeing using scooters in a daring heist that lasted approximately eight minutes.
Dutch art detective a renowned specialist expressed his view he suspects the stolen items are likely "dispersed", having been broken up into hundreds of parts.
Experts suggest the pieces could be sold off for a small part of their true price and smuggled out of French territory, other experts indicated.
Who May Be Behind the Heist
The perpetrators were professionals, Mr Brand believes, evidenced by the fact they were through the museum of the Louvre so quickly.
"As you might expect, for an average individual, people don't suddenly decide overnight thinking, I will become a criminal, let's start with the world-famous museum," he noted.
"This won't be the first time they've done this," he continued. "They have done things before. They feel certain and they thought, it might work out with this, and took the chance."
Additionally demonstrating the skill of the thieves is treated as important, an elite police team with a "proven effectiveness in cracking major theft cases" has been tasked with tracking them down.
Police officials have said they suspect the heist is connected to an organised crime network.
Criminal organizations such as these typically have two objectives, legal official the prosecutor explained. "Either they operate on behalf of a sponsor, or to acquire valuable gems to perform illegal financial activities."
The expert believes it would be impossible to dispose of the artifacts as complete pieces, and he explained targeted robbery for a specific client is a scenario that typically occurs in movies.
"No one desires to handle an item so hot," he elaborated. "You cannot show it publicly, you cannot leave it to heirs, it cannot be sold."
Potential £10m Price Tag
The detective suggests the objects are likely broken down and separated, along with gold elements and silver melted down and the gems divided into smaller stones that will be virtually impossible to trace back to the Louvre robbery.
Gemstone expert a renowned expert, who presents the podcast about historical jewelry and was the famous fashion magazine's jewellery editor for two decades, explained the perpetrators had "cherry-picked" the most valuable jewels from the Louvre's collection.
The "magnificent exquisite jewels" will probably be extracted from the jewelry pieces and sold, she said, except for the tiara belonging to Empress Eugénie which features less valuable pieces mounted in it and was "too hot to possess," she added.
This could explain why they left it behind as they got away, together with one other item, and found by authorities.
The imperial headpiece that was taken, contains extremely rare authentic pearls which command enormous prices, authorities indicate.
Although the artifacts have been described as being beyond valuation, Ms Woolton believes they will be disposed of for a small percentage of their value.
"They're destined to someone who are able to acquire such items," she stated. "Authorities worldwide will search for the stolen goods – the thieves will accept whatever price is offered."
The precise value would they generate in money when disposed of? Concerning the estimated price of the stolen goods, Mr Brand stated the separated elements could be worth "several million."
The gems and removed precious metal may bring up to ten million pounds (over eleven million euros; $13.4m), says a jewelry specialist, senior official of an established company, a digital jewelry retailer.
He told the BBC the gang will require a skilled expert to extract the stones, and a professional diamond cutter to change the larger recognisable stones.
Smaller stones that couldn't be easily recognized might be marketed right away and although difficult to estimate the precise value of every gem taken, the more significant gems could be worth about half a million pounds per stone, he said.
"We know there are a minimum of four comparable in size, so adding each of them along with the gold components, it's likely reaching ten million," he concluded.
"The diamond and gemstone market is active and there are many buyers on the fringes that won't inquire regarding sources."
There are hopes that the artifacts may be found intact one day – but those hopes are diminishing over time.
There is a precedent – a historical showcase at the cultural institution features an item of jewellery previously stolen that later resurfaced in a sale much later.
Definitely includes the French public are deeply shocked regarding the theft, expressing a personal connection toward the treasures.
"We don't necessarily value gems since it represents a matter concerning authority, and that doesn't necessarily have a good connotation in France," a heritage expert, director of historical collections at French jeweller the prestigious firm, said