[Silver-colored ring with clear gemstone and white pearl. Photo Credit to Pexels]

The world's most popular museum became the scene of a daring seven-minute robbery on October 19, 2025, when a group of thieves broke into the Louvre in Paris and stole priceless jewelry once owned by French empresses.

According to police, the meticulously planned operation was carried out in the early hours of the morning, when a truck equipped with a mechanical lift positioned its basket beneath a second-floor window of the museum’s historic wing, which was undergoing construction work. 

Using the lift, the robbers entered through the window and employed an angle grinder to bypass security systems before reaching the Apollo Gallery, which is one of the Louvre’s most decorated and historically treasured exhibition rooms. 

The Apollo Gallery is renowned for displaying royal regalia and masterpieces from the French monarchy and had long been considered a potential target for professional art thieves. 

Once inside, six masked intruders smashed two glass display cases, threatened guards with power tools, and seized nine valuable pieces of jewelry before escaping on two Yamaha TMAX motor scooters. 

Some of the stolen items include a diadem and brooch belonging to Empress Eugénie  the wife of Napoleon III and an emerald necklace and earrings that once belonged to Empress Marie Louise the second wife of Napoleon Bonaparte.

These artifacts are not only of financial value but are irreplaceable pieces of French imperial history from the 19th century.

The robbers’ escape route through central Paris was unusually effective, as the motor scooters allowed them to slip through traffic and disappear before police arrived.

However, not everything went according to plan. 

Two of the stolen items, including Empress Eugénie’s crown, were later found abandoned near the museum grounds, apparently dropped during the getaway.

The recovered crown, made of gold and diamonds, had been severely damaged.

French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez addressed the public shortly after the heist, describing the perpetrators as “highly organized professionals who had studied the museum’s structure in detail.”

To locate the remaining stolen artifacts and identify the suspects involved in the heist, Paris police have begun a thorough investigation working closely with Interpol.

After the theft, the Louvre temporarily closed the Apollo Gallery for a comprehensive security review.

Museums across Europe have also started reassessing their own security protocols after the incident sparked serious concerns about the protection of national heritage.

The stolen jewelry holds immense symbolic value to France because it reflects a tangible link to the nation’s imperial past and the legacy of Napoleon’s reign.

Authorities warned that recovery could prove difficult if the thieves dismantle the jewels and attempt to sell individual stones on the black market.

Louvre officials pledged to recover the missing treasures, hold those responsible accountable, and prevent any future breach of this kind.