How the Louvre thieves walked off with Napoleon’s jewels — and what’s next for the gems

During the 1930s, France invested enormous financial and intellectual capital into building the Maginot Line, a system of bunkers and fortifications intended to prevent a German invasion.

In 1940, Nazi armies marched around the Line and captured the nation in a matter of weeks. Last week, French security prowess was on display once again when four thieves practically strolled into the country’s famed Louvre Museum, home to priceless works of art, and made off with several pieces of the nation’s crown jewels.

Footage of the burglars entering with equipment no more sophisticated than a cherry picker and a couple of high-vis vests was a national embarrassment for a country obsessed with its cultural heritage.

The fact that a set of criminals could steal a national treasure from the world’s most visited museum in broad daylight raises many questions about the murky market for fine arts and precious stones of the illicit variety. Chief among them, why were the thieves successful, what do you do with a stolen diamond studded crown, and how come even French jewel thieves get to work normal office hours?