The Louvre, the world’s most-visited museum in Paris, France, has closed on Sunday following a robbery of “priceless jewelry,” the French interior minister has said.
French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez told radio station France Inter: “A major robbery took place this morning in the Apollo Room. Individuals entered the Louvre Museum from outside, using a external freight elevator that was positioned on a truck.”
The Apollo Room houses the French Crown Jewels, as well as treasures including Louis XIV’s hardstone vessel collection.
The thieves forced open a window using an angle grinder and stole jewelry that has “sentimental value and is priceless,” the interior minister added.
There were “three or four perpetrators,” Nuñez said.
A detailed list of the stolen items is being compiled, the French interior ministry said in a statement.
The robbery took only seven minutes, with the suspects fleeing on motorcycles, Nuñez told France Inter.
“Clearly, a team had been scouting the location. It was obviously a very experienced team that acted very, very quickly,” the interior minister said.
“I am confident that we will very quickly find the perpetrators and, above all, recover the stolen goods,” he added.
Minister of Culture Rachida Dati said the robbery took place on Sunday morning as the museum opened. The French interior ministry said the incident took place at 9:30 a.m. local time.
“No injuries were reported. I am on site alongside museum staff and the police. Investigations are ongoing,” Dati said in a post on X.
The museum, which houses world-famous artworks including Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, said it would remain closed due to “exceptional reasons.”
Last year, the Louvre welcomed 8.7 million visitors, with tourists from the United States making up 13% of all guests, second only to the French.
This is a developing story and will be updated.