The Crowns and the Crooks

As you may or may not know, the crown jewels have been stolen. But do you know how, what, and where? 

First, let’s start with where. The jewels were stolen from the Louvre (pronounced “loov”), a famous art museum in Paris, France. Next, who did it? Four people carried out the theft on Sunday, October 19th, 2025. As of now, it’s believed that all four suspects have been caught. And here’s the crazy part- they pulled it off at 9:30 AM, just after the museum opened!

The big question is, how did they do it? The thieves stole the crown jewels by using a truck-mounted ladder to reach the Louvre’s second floor, and then used a disc cutter to cut through the windows and enter the museum.

Once in, they smashed the display cases with power tools to steal the jewels. And just like that, they climbed back down the ladder and sped away on two scooters waiting outside!

Now, you’re probably wondering what was actually taken. In total, there were nine items stolen, though the thieves ended up dropping one of them. Among the stolen jewels were a diamond and sapphire set worn by Queen Marie Amélie and Queen Hortense. The set contained a tiara with 24 sapphires and 1,083 diamonds, a necklace with 8 sapphires and 631 diamonds, and a single earring that featured 2 sapphires and 59 diamonds. 

They also stole the Emerald Set, once worn by Marie-Louise. The set included a necklace that had 32 emeralds and 1,138 diamonds, as well as a pair of earrings; the exact number of jewels in the earrings is unknown. The thieves also took Empress Eugénie’s collection, which included a tiara adorned with 212 natural pearls and 1,998 diamonds, as well as a large corsage bow brooch featuring 2,438 diamonds and approximately 196 rose-cut stones. The item that the thieves ended up dropping was Empress Eugénie’s crown, which contained over 1,300 diamonds and 56 large emeralds. Finally, the reliquary brooch was stolen, described as silver and set with 94 diamonds.

As for the motive, the thieves most likely intended to sell the jewels for a high price. The total value of the stolen treasures was originally estimated at around $102 million USD.