The Louvre has announced plans to restore the crown of Empress Eugenie, which was abandoned by thieves during a brazen jewellery heist at the Paris museum last October. Thieves made off with €88 million in jewels but dropped the 170-year-old crown as they fled.
The museum said the crown was left “badly deformed” but was nevertheless “nearly intact” and can be restored “without the need for reconstruction.” The crown was part of a pair commissioned by Napoleon III in 1855, although neither he nor Eugenie had a formal coronation.
Louvre officials reported that all 56 emeralds remain in place. The piece is missing 10 “very small” diamonds out of the original 1,354, and only one of the eight golden eagles around the rim is missing.
The museum will launch a competitive bidding process to choose an accredited restorer under the French Heritage Code. A new advisory committee of experts — including museum officials and jewellery specialists — will support the work. The Louvre will also invite one representative each from the five historic jewellery houses Mellerio, Chaumet, Cartier, Boucheron and Van Cleef & Arpels to join the committee.
October’s unprecedented heist sparked a major review of the Louvre’s security. French authorities have arrested four members of the alleged crew, but officials say the alleged mastermind remains at large.
Eight pieces from France’s crown jewels were stolen, including an emerald necklace that belonged to Marie-Louise, Napoleon Bonaparte’s second wife, three pieces from a sapphire set, and a separate diadem of Eugenie set with pearls. None of the stolen jewels has been recovered.
Edited by: Jenipher Camino Gonzalez