Louvre jewellery heist heightens security fears at Paris museum

The world-famous Louvre in Paris was closed on Sunday after a masked gang raided one of its galleries, prompting a security review and questions about protections at major cultural sites.

In 1911, an Italian museum employee was able to slip the Mona Lisa out of the Louvre under his coat after lifting the painting from the wall of a quiet gallery. It was recovered two years later, and the culprit said he believed the Leonardo da Vinci masterpiece belonged in Italy.

Today the painting hangs in a high-security glass compartment. In 1998, Le Chemin de Sevres, a 19th century Camille Corot painting, was stolen and has never been found. The incident prompted a massive overhaul of museum security.

There has been a recent spate of thefts targeting French museums. Last month, thieves broke into the Adrien Dubouche Museum in Limoges and stole porcelain works reputedly worth €9.5m ($11m / £8.25m).

In November 2024, seven items of \"great historic and heritage value\" were stolen from the Cognacq-Jay Museum in the capital. Five were recovered a few days ago. The same month, armed robbers raided the Hieron Museum in Burgundy, firing shots before escaping with millions of pounds worth of 20th century artworks.