Will France Get Back Its Precious Royal Gems – Or Has It Become Too Late?

Police in France are urgently trying to retrieve irreplaceable jewels robbed from the Paris museum in a daring broad daylight theft, but experts caution it could be impossible to get them back.

Within the French capital on Sunday, robbers broke into the most popular museum globally, stealing eight valued items then fleeing via motor scooters in a audacious theft that took about eight minutes.

Expert art detective an expert in the field told the BBC he believes the artifacts are likely "already dismantled", once separated into many fragments.

It is highly likely the stolen jewels could be sold off for a mere percentage of their value and smuggled out of French territory, additional specialists indicated.

Possible Culprits Behind the Heist

The group were professionals, Mr Brand believes, shown by the fact they were inside and outside of the Louvre with such efficiency.

"As you might expect, as a normal person, you don't wake up one day planning, I will become a thief, choosing as first target the world-famous museum," he noted.

"This isn't their initial robbery," he added. "They've carried out previous crimes. They are confident and they calculated, we could succeed with this, and took the chance."

As further evidence the skill of the gang is considered significant, a dedicated task force with a "high success rate in resolving major theft cases" has been assigned with tracking them down.

Authorities have stated they suspect the theft is connected to an organised crime network.

Sophisticated gangs like these typically have two objectives, French prosecutor Laure Beccuau said. "Either to act on behalf of a client, or to obtain precious stones to perform financial crimes."

The detective suggests it seems impossible to market the jewels in their original form, and he explained targeted robbery for an individual buyer is something that typically occurs in movies.

"Nobody wants to handle an artifact so hot," he elaborated. "You can't display it to acquaintances, you can't bequeath it to heirs, it cannot be sold."

Possible £10m Price Tag

The detective suggests the stolen items will be dismantled and separated, along with gold elements and precious metals liquefied and the gems re-cut into smaller stones that would be virtually impossible to trace back to the museum theft.

Historical jewelry specialist a renowned expert, creator of the digital series focusing on gemstones and was Vogue magazine's jewelry specialist for 20 years, told the BBC the thieves had "specifically chosen" the most important gemstones from the institution's artifacts.

The "beautiful large flawless stones" will probably be extracted of their mountings and marketed, she said, except for the crown from the historical figure which features less valuable pieces incorporated within it and was considered "too recognizable to possess," she explained.

This potentially clarifies why they left it behind during the escape, along with one other item, and located by officials.

The imperial headpiece that was taken, has rare organic pearls which are incredibly valuable, authorities indicate.

While the items are regarded as being priceless, the expert anticipates they could be marketed for a minimal part of their true price.

"They'll likely end up to individuals who are prepared to acquire such items," she stated. "Everyone will be looking for the stolen goods – they'll settle for any amount available."

How much exactly could they fetch as payment when disposed of? Concerning the potential value of the haul, the detective stated the separated elements could be worth "many millions."

The gems and taken gold may bring approximately a significant sum (€11.52m; millions in US currency), stated by Tobias Kormind, senior official of an established company, an internet-based gem dealer.

He stated the thieves will require a trained specialist to extract the stones, and a professional diamond cutter to alter the more noticeable pieces.

Smaller stones that were harder to trace might be marketed immediately and despite challenges to estimate the precise value of each piece stolen, the larger ones may amount to approximately a significant amount each, he explained.

"We know there are a minimum of four comparable in size, therefore combining all of those along with the gold components, you are probably coming close to £10m," he concluded.

"The diamond and luxury goods trade is active and plenty of customers operate on the fringes that avoid questioning about origins."

Some optimism remains that the artifacts may be found intact eventually – but those hopes are narrowing with each passing day.

Similar cases have occurred – the Cartier exhibition at the cultural institution includes an artifact stolen in 1948 that later resurfaced in a sale much later.

What is certain is many in France are extremely upset by the Louvre heist, demonstrating a personal connection with the artifacts.

"French people don't always like jewellery because it's an issue of authority, and this isn't typically receive favorable interpretation in France," a heritage expert, head of heritage at established French company the historical business, stated