‘The real art is in selling’: Speculation rife around where Louvre jewels may end up, and how

In the wake of a shocking weekend heist at the Louvre Museum, which saw millions of dollars worth of France’s historic royal jewels vanish, experts are sounding the alarm: the priceless artifacts may already be slated for destruction.

With the stolen emerald necklace, crowns, brooches, and earrings—once worn by 19th-century French royalty—now instantly recognisable across the globe, experts warn that thieves have a strong incentive to break the pieces apart and melt them down to sell on the black market.

The stolen jewels are valued at over $100 million (88 million euros).

Destruction and disguise

According to art crime experts, the most likely path for monetising such high-profile loot is to dismantle it, thereby destroying the historical value but ensuring a quick, untraceable sale.

“By breaking them apart, they will hide their theft,” said Christopher Marinello, founder of Art Recovery International, who spoke to The Associated Press (AP). He suggests that if successfully cut and melted, the smaller gems and metals could be slipped into the legitimate jewelry supply chain.

“You don’t even have to put them on a black market, you just put them in a jewelry store,” explained Erin Thompson, an art crime professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice told AP. “It could be sold down the street from the Louvre.”

This practice has become increasingly common with stolen metal and jeweled goods as thieves seek to cover their tracks and make money on items too famous to be sold intact.

Marinello believes, that finding a market to sell the full artifacts would be incredibly difficult after “everyone and their sister” has seen photos of them over the last week. Taking them out of France and through international jewel cutters could make them even more “traceless,” he added.

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A difficult sale, regardless

Despite the grim outlook, not all experts agree on the ease of sale.

“The real art in an art heist isn’t the stealing, it’s the selling,” Robert Wittman, a former senior investigator with the FBI’s art crime team told AP. He expressed skepticism that the thieves will successfully monetize the artifacts, noting that criminals behind such heists are often “better criminals or thieves than they are businessmen.”

Wittman pointed out that the centuries-old gold may not be as pure as what’s in demand today, and certain high-quality gems might still be identifiable by their clarity even after being recut. Given these hurdles and the risks involved, he believes that “there’s really no point destroying them.”

Scott Guginsky, executive vice president of the Jewelers’ Security Alliance, echoed this, adding that the older, ungraded diamonds in the pieces are “not something that you can move on the open market” or sell through an auction house, as quoted by AP.

Chance of recovery ’looks dim'

The age of the jewels poses another challenge for investigators.

Unlike modern gemstones which sometimes carry laser inscriptions, experts say it’s “unlikely” these historic pieces have such tracking features. Larger gems, Thompson adds, can be recut to the point they are entirely unrecognizable, a process that requires a high level of skill and a network of contacts who “don’t ask too many questions.”

As more time passes, the chance of recovering the historic artifacts intact is fading. While the individuals who physically stole the items—often described as “hired hands”—are frequently caught, the items themselves rarely are.

The stolen jewels were reportedly not privately insured, ruling out a potential “no questions asked” reward from an insurance company. Unless the French government publicises a substantial reward for information, or promising leads surface from the evidence left behind, experts like Marinello remain pessimistic about the jewels’ survival.