Overview
- The museum concluded the crown retained near-complete integrity after being dropped during the thieves’ escape, allowing a full restoration without reconstitution.
- The piece was crushed and visibly deformed when extracted through a narrow slit cut in its case and then subjected to a violent shock.
- Condition checks found one of eight gold eagles missing, all 56 emeralds intact, and about ten small diamonds lost out of 1,354.
- A committee chaired by Louvre president Laurence des Cars will supervise the work with representatives from Mellerio, Chaumet, Cartier, Boucheron, and Van Cleef & Arpels.
- A licensed restorer will be chosen through a competition as police continue to hunt eight missing 19th‑century jewels valued around €88 million, with four suspects already in pretrial detention.