Louvre Releases Photos of Damaged Crown of Empress Eugénie Left Behind During Heist

The Louvre Museum has released photos of the damaged crown of Empress Eugénie, which was left behind during the robbery that took place last October.

The museum has revealed that the damaged crown can be restored.

Louvre Releases Photos of Damaged Crown of Empress Eugénie

Empress's crown dropped in Louvre heist to be fully restored.

The thieves who robbed the Louvre last October made off with an estimated 88 million euros ($104 million) in jewels, but dropped empress Eugenie's diamond- and emerald-studded crown as they escaped… pic.twitter.com/PsPQZQed0k
— AFP News Agency (@AFP) February 5, 2026

According to a report by ABC News, the robbers dropped the crown during their escape, which led it to be crushed.

The museum described as "badly deformed" but "nearly intact." All 56 of its emeralds have been retained. The same goes for all but 10 of its 1,354 diamonds.

However, it is missing one of its eight golden eagles.

The BBC notes in its report that four suspects have already been arrested by French authorities. However, the mastermind of the heist has yet to be found.

The other missing jewels have also not been located as of writing.

Crown of Empress Eugénie

The damaged crown belonged to Empress Eugénie, the wife of Napoleon III. It is the consort crown that was made specifically for her.

After Napoleon III was overthrown after the Franco-Prussian War, most of the French Crown Jewels were sold by the Third Republic. However, the former empress was allowed to keep her crown.

It was subsequently bequeathed to Marie Clotilde Bonaparte, the eldest child of Victor, Prince Napoléon and Princess Clémentine of Belgium.

It was auctioned in 1988 and was eventually donated to the Louvre by Roberto Polo, according to Vanity Fair.