LAST UPDATE | 19 Oct

“PRICELESS” JEWELLERY HAS been stolen by thieves with power tools at the Louvre in Paris, causing the museum to close.

French prosecutor Laure Beccuautold told French news outlets that four thieves had focused on two displays in the Gallerie d’Apollon, completing their broad daylight robbery in just seven minutes.

The Gallerie d’Apollon, or Apollo’s Gallery, houses the French Crown Jewels.

Culture Minister Rachida Dati, who originally announced the robbery, said one of the jewellery pieces stolen from the Louvre in Paris was later found near the museum.

France’s culture ministry said eight items of jewellery were stolen from the Louvre in today’s raid, including an emerald-and-diamond necklace that Napoleon gave his wife Empress Marie Louise.

“Two high-security display cases were targeted, and eight objects of invaluable cultural heritage were stolen,” said the ministry statement.

A ninth object – the diamond- and emerald encrusted crown of the Empress Eugenie – was recovered nearby, where it was dropped by the thieves as they fled, the statement added.

A police source said the thieves arrived on a scooter armed with small chainsaws and used a goods lift to reach the room they were targeting.

Police officers look for clues by a basket lift used by thieves. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

The robbery happened between 8:30am and 8:40am, just 800m from Paris police headquarters.

The  museum website states that the Gallerie d’Apollon hosts three historical diamonds – the Regent, the Sancy and the Hortensia – as well as an emerald and diamond necklace that Napoleon gave his wife Empress Marie-Louise.

The crown found today near the Louvre once belonged to Empress Eugenie, the wife of Napoleon III, features golden eagles and is covered in 1,354 diamonds and 56 emeralds, according to the museum’s website.

The museum also houses famous artworks such as Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa and the Ancient Greek sculpture Venus de Milo.

It is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Paris and holds the title of the world’s most-visited museum.

According to the museum, it welcomes around nine million visitors annually.

With additional reporting from AFP.