🔗 Share this article Is France Able to Get Back Its Precious Royal Gems – Or Is It Too Late? French authorities are urgently trying to retrieve priceless gemstones stolen from the Paris museum in a brazen daylight robbery, but experts caution it may already be too late to recover them. In Paris over the weekend, burglars broke into the world's most-visited museum, stealing eight precious artifacts and getting away on scooters in a daring heist that was completed in under ten minutes. Dutch art detective an expert in the field stated publicly he believes the stolen items may already be "already dismantled", after being taken apart into many fragments. There is a strong chance the artifacts may be disposed of for a mere percentage of their value and smuggled out of French territory, additional specialists have said. Possible Culprits Behind the Robbery The group are experienced criminals, Mr Brand believes, shown by the fact they were in and out of the Louvre so quickly. "You know, for regular people, one doesn't just get up in the morning thinking, I will become a thief, and begin with the Louvre Museum," he explained. "This won't be the first time they've done this," he said. "They've committed previous crimes. They are confident and they thought, we might get away with this, and went for it." In another sign the professionalism of the group is being taken seriously, a specialist police unit with a "strong track record in cracking significant crimes" has been assigned with locating the perpetrators. Police officials have stated they think the theft is connected to a sophisticated gang. Criminal organizations like these usually pursue two primary purposes, Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau stated. "Either they operate for the benefit of a financier, or to secure precious stones to conduct financial crimes." The expert believes it seems impossible to market the jewels as complete pieces, and he said commissioned theft for a private collector is a scenario that typically occurs in movies. "Few people wish to acquire an item this recognizable," he stated. "You can't display it to acquaintances, you can't bequeath it to family, it cannot be sold." Estimated £10m Value The expert thinks the objects will be dismantled and separated, along with gold elements and silver components melted and the precious stones divided into less recognizable pieces that will be extremely difficult to connect to the Paris heist. Jewellery historian a renowned expert, who presents the podcast If Jewels Could Talk and formerly worked as Vogue magazine's gemstone expert for two decades, stated the robbers had "specifically chosen" the most important treasures from the museum's holdings. The "beautiful large exquisite jewels" would likely be removed of their mountings and marketed, she explained, excluding the tiara belonging to Empress Eugénie which features less valuable pieces mounted in it and proved to be "too hot to handle," she added. This might account for why they left it behind as they got away, in addition to a second artifact, and recovered by police. The royal crown which was stolen, features exceptionally uncommon authentic pearls which are incredibly valuable, specialists confirm. Even though the pieces are regarded as being beyond valuation, the expert anticipates they to be sold for a small percentage of their value. "They'll likely end up to someone who is willing to acquire such items," she stated. "Authorities worldwide will search for the stolen goods – they'll settle for any amount available." The precise value could they fetch in money when disposed of? Regarding the estimated price of the haul, the detective stated the dismantled components could be worth "several million." The jewels and gold stolen could fetch up to £10 million (€11.52m; $13.4m), stated by an industry expert, chief executive of 77 Diamonds, a digital jewelry retailer. He stated the perpetrators must have a skilled expert to remove the gems, and an expert gem cutter to modify the more noticeable pieces. Minor components that couldn't be easily recognized would be disposed of immediately and despite challenges to determine the exact price of each piece taken, the bigger stones could be worth about £500,000 per stone, he explained. "We know there are at least four comparable in size, thus totaling all of those along with the gold components, it's likely coming close to the estimated figure," he concluded. "The diamond and luxury goods trade has buyers and numerous purchasers exist on the fringes that avoid questioning regarding sources." Hope persists that the stolen goods may be found in original condition in the future – but those hopes are diminishing with each passing day. There is a precedent – the Cartier exhibition at the V&A Museum includes a piece of jewelry previously stolen that later resurfaced in an auction much later. Definitely is many in France are deeply shocked by the Louvre heist, expressing a personal connection toward the treasures. "French people don't always appreciate jewelry as it symbolizes a question of power, and which doesn't always have a good connotation among French people," a heritage expert, head of heritage at French jeweller the historical business, said