Ella Scott
The Louvre Museum has issued a heart-breaking update on the sorry state of some ‘precious’ works, just weeks after jewel thieves targeted the Parisian institution.
On October 19, criminals disguised as construction workers pulled off the ultimate heist - snatching eight pieces of the French Crown Jewels from the Louvre’s Galerie d’Apollon.
Charges have since been filed against four suspects arrested in connection with the robbery, according to BBC News.
The three men and one woman, who are currently in custody, are believed to have made up the commando group and are said to have resided within the Paris region, the outlet stated.
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Despite efforts, the location of the artefacts thought to be worth around €88 million ($102.547.280), continues to allude police.
Sadly, the viral heist isn’t the only tragedy to befall the world’s most-visited museum.
In November, the Campana gallery, which houses nine rooms dedicated to ancient Greek pottery, was temporarily closed due to structural weakness.
Now, a water leak has been reported, damaging hundreds of books, according to The Louvre's deputy administrator Francis Steinbock.
Speaking to French broadcaster BFM TV, the expert confirmed that the leak affected one of the three rooms occupied by the Egyptian antiquities department's.
The issue is said to have taken place last month, but has only been reported today (December 8).
Steinbock confirmed that between 300-400 works were affected by the leak. He confirmed that that count is still ongoing.
The books, described as ‘Egyptology journals’ and ‘scientific documentation’, derive from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
“No heritage artefacts have been affected by this damage,” the Louvre employee stated. “At this stage, we have no irreparable and definitive losses in these collections.”
The BBC reported that once the damage has been assessed, the tomes will be dried and sent to a bookbinder, who will be tasked with restoring the volumes before they return to the museum’s shelves.
Steinbock told French media that the leak was known ‘for years’ and that repairs are scheduled for some time in 2026.
The condition of the Louvre, originally built as a Parisian defensive palace in the late 12th century, has previously been blasted by Valerie Baud of the CFDT union.
"Staff representatives have been warning about the condition of the building for years, because it affects working conditions and visitors,” she claimed, as per Sky News.
"But we didn't realize it was this bad," Baud added. "It is a major deterioration in the situation.”
The unionist’s warning came months after Louvre president, Laurence des Cars, had informed Culture Minister Rachida Dati that the museum was in a state of ‘worrying obsolescence’.
As reported by Le Parisien, Des Cars described visiting the iconic building in January 2025 as ‘a physical ordeal’, claiming that facilities were ‘well below international standards’.
“The situation can no longer tolerate the status quo,” she concluded, as per the outlet.
In October, a report published by France's public audit body, known as the Cour des Comptes, criticized the Louvre’s excessive spending on artwork, which it said was ‘to the detriment of the maintenance and renovation of buildings'.
“The management prioritised visible and attractive operations at the expense of the maintenance and renovation of buildings and technical installations, particularly those relating to safety and security,” claimed Pierre Moscovici, one of the committee’s senior figures.
Currently, the museum houses famous works such as Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo, and various Egyptian antiques, among other spectacles.
According to official tourism statistics, the museum welcomed a jaw-dropping 8.7 million total visitors in 2024.