Will France Recover Its Invaluable Crown Jewels – Or Is It Too Late?

French authorities are making every effort to retrieve irreplaceable jewels taken from the Louvre Museum in a brazen daytime heist, but experts caution it may already be past the point of recovery to get them back.

Within the French capital on Sunday, burglars gained access to the top tourist attraction worldwide, stealing eight precious artifacts and getting away on scooters in a bold robbery that was completed in eight minutes.

Expert art detective an expert in the field stated publicly he feared the jewels may already be "dispersed", after being taken apart into hundreds of parts.

There is a strong chance the pieces will be sold for a mere percentage of their value and illegally transported from France, additional specialists have said.

Who May Be Behind the Robbery

The perpetrators acted professionally, Mr Brand believes, evidenced by the way they managed inside and outside of the building with such efficiency.

"As you might expect, for an average individual, you don't wake up one day believing, I will become a thief, choosing as first target the world-famous museum," he noted.

"This won't be their first heist," he added. "They have done other burglaries. They're self-assured and they thought, we might get away with this plan, and took the chance."

Additionally demonstrating the professionalism of the thieves is being taken seriously, an elite police team with a "high success rate in cracking significant crimes" has been assigned with finding them.

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

Sophisticated gangs such as these generally have two main goals, French prosecutor Laure Beccuau explained. "Either to act for the benefit of a sponsor, or to secure precious stones to perform financial crimes."

Mr Brand thinks it is impossible to dispose of the artifacts intact, and he explained commissioned theft for a private collector is a scenario that only happens in Hollywood films.

"Nobody wants to acquire an artifact this recognizable," he elaborated. "It cannot be shown publicly, you can't bequeath it to heirs, you cannot sell it."

Possible £10m Worth

Mr Brand believes the artifacts will be dismantled and separated, with the gold and silver melted down and the gems re-cut into less recognizable pieces that would be extremely difficult to connect to the museum theft.

Historical jewelry specialist an authority in the field, who presents the digital series focusing on gemstones and formerly worked as the prestigious publication's jewellery editor for 20 years, told the BBC the thieves had "specifically chosen" the most important jewels from the museum's holdings.

The "beautiful large flawless stones" are expected to be removed of their mountings and disposed of, she said, excluding the tiara belonging to the historical figure which features less valuable pieces incorporated within it and was "too dangerous to keep," she added.

This could explain why it was dropped during the escape, in addition to another piece, and located by officials.

Empress Eugenie's tiara that was taken, contains extremely rare natural pearls which are incredibly valuable, authorities indicate.

Although the artifacts are regarded as having immeasurable worth, the expert anticipates they will be disposed of for a minimal part of their true price.

"They will go to individuals who are able to acquire such items," she explained. "Everyone will be looking for the stolen goods – they will take any amount available."

How much exactly might they bring financially if sold on? When asked about the potential value of the stolen goods, the expert said the cut-up parts may amount to "several million."

The precious stones and gold stolen could fetch up to £10 million (over eleven million euros; millions in US currency), says an industry expert, chief executive of an established company, an online jeweller.

He told the BBC the gang must have an experienced professional to remove the gems, and a professional diamond cutter to change the more noticeable pieces.

Smaller stones that were harder to trace would be disposed of right away and although difficult to determine the exact price of every gem stolen, the bigger stones may amount to around £500,000 per stone, he said.

"Reports indicate no fewer than four that large, therefore combining all those pieces together with the gold components, it's likely reaching ten million," he stated.

"The diamond and precious stone industry has buyers and plenty of customers operate in less regulated areas that avoid questioning too many questions."

There are hopes that the artifacts might resurface in original condition in the future – yet this possibility are fading with each passing day.

There is a precedent – the Cartier exhibition at the London museum displays a piece of jewelry taken decades ago before reappearing in a sale many years after.

What is certain includes the French public are extremely upset regarding the theft, having felt a cultural bond with the artifacts.

"French people don't always appreciate jewelry since it represents a question of authority, and which doesn't always carry positive associations among French people," a heritage expert, head of heritage at French jeweller the prestigious firm, explained