"Priceless" jewellery has been stolen from the Louvre museum in Paris - as authorities revealed details of the daring raid that has forced the closure of the world famous landmark.
According to Sky News, the museum, which is the world's most popular, drawing up to 30,000 visitors a day, said on X it was closing for "exceptional reasons" on Sunday.
In a separate post, culture minister Rachida Dati said there had been a robbery and she was on site alongside museum and police teams.
French interior minister Laurent Nunez said the "major robbery" involved intruders entering the museum via a basket lift using a platform mounted on a lorry.
"They broke a window and went towards several display cases where they stole jewellery," he added. "These are jewels that have genuine heritage value and are, in fact, priceless."
Nunez told France Inter radio the robbery lasted seven minutes, while the interior ministry said the criminals fled on two motorbikes. No injuries have been reported.
The robbers escaped with nine pieces of jewellery from Napoleon and the Empress's collection.
A necklace, a brooch, a tiara, were among the items taken from the Napoleon and French Sovereigns display cases. A third robber stayed outside, Le Parisien said.
The robbery took place between 9.30 and 9.40am, Le Monde said, citing initial findings.
The paper said thieves arrived on scooters and used a freight lift to reach the room they sought. They were equipped with small chainsaws.
