The Louvre Museum heist was a classic case of German efficiency. That at least is how a German freight lift manufacturer jokingly portrayed it in an ad.

Authorities were racing Monday to reassure the public about security at key cultural sites — and find the jewels stolen from the museum before they can be broken up and melted down.

The French crown jewels robbed from the Louvre museum in Paris are likely lost forever, an art crime expert tells CBS News, even if the thieves are caught.

The precious artifacts snatched from Paris’s Louvre Museum on Sunday include an emerald necklace gifted by Napoleon to his second wife and other priceless crown jewels.

Hours after the ‘heist of the century’ unfolded at the Louvre Museum on Sunday, another museum in northeastern France was robbed. The theft took place at the Maison des Lumières (House of Enlightenment) in Langres,

The Louvre in Paris is open again, days after the spectacular robbery at the world-renowned museum, the latest in a series of robberies that has left visitors puzzling over empty cabinets and police in search of clues.

Hours after the Louvre crown jewels vanished, thieves hit another French museum, stealing 2,000 gold and silver coins worth about $104,000.

A prosecutor in France has said the financial loss from a robbery at the Louvre museum is estimated at €88 million.