Heist at the Louvre: Napoleon’s jewels reported stolen

The Louvre Museum in Paris has been closed following a jewellery theft, according to French authorities. The Ministry of Culture has reported that intruders broke into the museum this morning and may have stolen several items associated with Napoleon Bonaparte.

Culture Minister Rachida Dati said the incident occurred in broad daylight at around 9.30am. According to witnesses cited by Le Parisien, masked individuals arrived on scooters before entering the building. The suspects fled the scene and remain at large.

According to the French news agency AFP, nine jewels believed to belong to the collection of Napoleon and his wife, Empress Joséphine, are missing from the Galerie d’Apollon, where part of France’s historic Crown Jewels are housed.

The Louvre announced on social media that it would be closed 'for exceptional reasons', and all visitors were evacuated.

This marks the second major museum heist in Paris in just over a month. In mid-September, gold nuggets worth 600,000 euros were stolen from the National Museum of Natural History.

The Louvre is one of the world's largest and most popular museums. Located on the Right Bank of the Seine in central Paris, the museum is housed in a former royal palace and comprises three wings: Richelieu, Sully and Denon. Its most famous masterpiece is Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa. The museum is part of the Réunion des musées nationaux et du Grand Palais and attracts around nine million visitors each year.

^{French police officers stand next to a furniture elevator used by robbers to enter the Louvre Museum. © AFP}