The Louvre Museum reopened to the public on Wednesday, three days after a brazen daylight robbery in which masked thieves made off with historic royal jewellery worth an estimated €88 million ($102 million).

Live footage from Reuters TV showed crowds of visitors once again streaming through the museum’s glass pyramid entrance, restoring a sense of normalcy to the world’s most visited art institution after a heist that stunned France and captivated global audiences.

According to investigators, four suspects wearing balaclavas broke into the Louvre on Sunday morning, using a construction crane to smash a window of the Galerie d’Apollon, which houses France’s crown jewels. Once inside, they shattered display cases and fled on motorbikes with the stolen items.

The robbery took place around 9:30 a.m. (0730 GMT) — after the museum had already opened to the public — and lasted six to seven minutes, Paris Prosecutor Laure Beccuau told BFM TV.

While the thieves were unarmed, they reportedly threatened guards with angle grinders. Eight of nine targeted objects were stolen; the ninth — the diamond-studded crown of Empress Eugénie, wife of Napoleon III — was dropped during their escape.

“It’s worth several tens of millions of euros — just this crown. And it’s not, in my opinion, the most important item,” said Alexandre Giquello, president of Drouot auction house.

Beccuau said investigators were puzzled that the thieves ignored the Regent Diamond, one of the Louvre’s most prized jewels, valued by Sotheby’s at over $60 million.

“I don’t have an explanation,” she said. “It will only be when they’re in custody and questioned that we’ll know what instructions they had — and why they didn’t target that display.”

She confirmed that one suspect wore a yellow reflective vest, which has been recovered by investigators. The gang also attempted to set fire to the crane mounted on their truck before fleeing, but failed.

French President Emmanuel Macron condemned the theft as “an attack on our heritage and our history.”

“We will recover the works, and the perpetrators will be brought to justice,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

The heist has reignited debate over security standards at the Louvre, where officials have repeatedly warned about underinvestment in infrastructure and surveillance at a museum that welcomed 8.7 million visitors in 2024.

Museum administrators said security protocols have been reinforced following the robbery to reassure visitors and safeguard the institution’s collection of priceless art and artefacts.

As operations resumed Wednesday, visitors expressed both relief and unease.

“I’m glad the museum reopened so quickly, but it’s shocking that something like this could happen here,” said one tourist outside the glass pyramid.

The Louvre, home to masterpieces such as the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo, remains under heightened security as police continue their search for the four suspects, whose swift, high-precision operation has been described as one of the most audacious art thefts in modern French history.