
In a daring robbery on Sunday, a group of thieves stole eight pieces of jewelry of "incalculable" value from the Louvre Museum in Paris. Their target was the Apollo Gallery, where the historic French crown jewels are displayed.
The robbers also targeted the magnificent crown of Empress Eugénie, wife of Napoleon III, which contains 1,354 diamonds, 56 emeralds and 1,136 rose-cut diamonds, but left it behind when guards intervened to stop the theft.
Among the stolen objects were:
Empress Eugénie's tiara, adorned with 212 pearls and around 3,000 diamonds.
A decorative bow, studded with over 2,400 diamonds, part of a royal belt.
A diamond brooch from 1855, called a "relic brooch", which does not contain a religious relic but is simply jewelry.
A sapphire jewelry set, which included a tiara with 24 Ceylon sapphires and 1,083 diamonds, a necklace with eight sapphires surrounded by diamonds, and a pair of earrings. Only one of the earrings was stolen during the robbery.
An emerald and diamond necklace, a wedding gift from Napoleon to his second wife, Marie Louise, with 32 emeralds and 1,138 diamonds.
A pair of emerald and diamond earrings that belonged to the same set.
According to the French Ministry of Culture, the loss is considered a serious blow to French cultural heritage. Investigations are underway, while the Louvre has increased security measures.