{"id":132075,"date":"2025-10-19T13:37:08","date_gmt":"2025-10-19T13:37:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/132075\/"},"modified":"2025-10-19T13:37:08","modified_gmt":"2025-10-19T13:37:08","slug":"thieves-steal-pieces-of-jewellery-with-inestimable-heritage-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/132075\/","title":{"rendered":"thieves steal pieces of jewellery with \u2018inestimable heritage\u2019 \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

Thieves have broken into the Louvre Museum in Paris<\/a> through a window and have stolen pieces of jewellery with \u201cinestimable heritage\u201d before escaping on motorbikes, the French interior ministry<\/a> said on Sunday.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe investigation has begun, and a detailed list of the stolen items is being compiled. Beyond their market value, these items have inestimable heritage and historical value,\u201d the ministry said in a statement.<\/p>\n

No injuries were reported, either among the public or among Louvre staff or law enforcement officers, it said.<\/p>\n

The newspaper Le Parisien reported pieces of jewellery from the Napoleon collection were stolen.<\/p>\n

Interior minister Laurent Nu\u00f1ez called it a \u201cmajor robbery\u201d.<\/p>\n

He said on France Inter radio that individuals \u201centered from the outside using a basket lift\u201d, stole jewels of \u201cinestimable value\u201d, and that the operation \u201clasted seven minutes\u201d.<\/p>\n

It was \u201cmanifestly a team that had done scouting\u201d, he said, adding that the panes were cut \u201cwith a disc cutter\u201d.<\/p>\n

Mr Nu\u00f1ez would not confirm what jewels were taken but said the thieves targeted two glass cases. The Apollon wing of the Louvre has a set of historic crowns, diadems and sovereign jewellery.<\/p>\n

He said the museum was evacuated to preserve evidence and to allow investigators and forensics teams to carry out their work. The Paris prosecutor has opened an inquiry into the theft.<\/p>\n

\u201cA robbery took place this morning at the opening of the Louvre Museum,\u201d French culture minister Rachida Dati wrote on social media earlier. <\/p>\n

She added: \u201cNo injuries reported. I\u2019m on site with museum staff and police.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ms Dati confirmed that one stolen piece of jewellery was recovered outside the museum where the thieves had fled.<\/p>\n

The Louvre, the world\u2019s most-visited museum, said on X it would remain closed for the day for \u201cexceptional reasons\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"FrenchFrench police officers stand next to a furniture elevator used by robbers to enter the Louvre Museum, on Quai Francois Mitterrand, in Paris. Photograph: DIMITAR DILKOFF\/AFP via Getty Images <\/p>\n

One of the largest arts centres on the planet, the Louvre attracts more than eight million visitors a year. Its works range from classical sculpture to Mona Lisa, Leonardo da Vinci\u2019s 16-century masterpiece and the world\u2019s most famous portrait.<\/p>\n

Earlier this year, the French president, Emmanuel Macron, announced a major new renovation of the museum after its director warned that visiting the overcrowded building had become a \u201cphysical ordeal\u201d.<\/p>\n

In a note to the cultural ministry leaked to the media in January, the Louvre\u2019s director, Laurence des Cars, had said the space below the museum\u2019s glass pyramid entrance was not properly insulated from the cold or heat, tended to amplify noise, and was uncomfortable for both the public and the staff. <\/p>\n

Ms Des Cars also raised the alarm over water leaks, failing infrastructure and temperature swings that endanger the conservation of works of art. Visitors faced overcrowding and substandard facilities, she said. \u2013 Agencies<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Thieves have broken into the Louvre Museum in Paris through a window and have stolen pieces of jewellery…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":132076,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[9,10,18,13,14,2220,6,19,17,11,12,15,16,5,11935,7,8],"class_list":{"0":"post-132075","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-headlines","8":"tag-breaking-news","9":"tag-breakingnews","10":"tag-eire","11":"tag-featured-news","12":"tag-featurednews","13":"tag-france","14":"tag-headlines","15":"tag-ie","16":"tag-ireland","17":"tag-latest-news","18":"tag-latestnews","19":"tag-main-news","20":"tag-mainnews","21":"tag-news","22":"tag-paris","23":"tag-top-stories","24":"tag-topstories"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/132075","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=132075"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/132075\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/132076"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=132075"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=132075"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=132075"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}