Thieves broke into the Louvre in Paris on October 19, 2024, stealing an estimated $102 million in jewels but dropping and severely damaging the crown of Empress Eugénie during their escape. The diamond- and emerald-encrusted crown, commissioned by Emperor Napoleon III in 1855, was deformed, had one hoop broken off, lost four palmettes and one gold eagle, and is missing 10 of its 1,354 diamonds. Judicial police seized it as evidence before transferring it to the Louvre’s decorative arts department, where directors Olivier Gabet and Anne Dion documented the damage. The museum has opened a public bidding process for an accredited conservator, with an advisory committee chaired by Louvre director Laurence des Cars overseeing the restoration.
The crown is one of only three surviving crowns of French rulers still held in France and entered the Louvre’s collection in 1988. Its restoration matters because it represents a rare piece of French imperial heritage and a direct link to the 19th-century monarchy. The theft has also had cultural ripple effects, inspiring Schiaparelli’s recent couture show in Paris, which featured reimagined versions of the stolen jewels. While police have arrested four suspects and traced the jewels to a suburban parking garage, the missing treasures remain unrecovered, underscoring the ongoing impact of the heist on the art world and public imagination.