Louvre reopens Apollo Gallery after heist, but no jewels on display

Visitors took pictures of the window which was broken during the heist in October last year (Lou Benoist/Pool Photo via AP)

The Louvre’s Apollo gallery has reopened to the public for the first time since last year’s crown jewels heist.

The collections and precious jewels that it once displayed have been removed, as the museum said the gallery was returning to its 17th-century original ceremonial purpose.

Security at the Paris museum has been boosted with the addition of new surveillance cameras and anti-intrusion systems.

Security improvement is a priority of the decade-long Louvre New Renaissance plan launched last year (Lou Benoist/Pool Photo via AP)

On the day of the heist – October 19 – thieves took less than eight minutes to force their way through a window into the Apollo Gallery and steal crown jewels valued at 88 million euros (£75 million) from the Louvre, in a weekend operation that stunned visitors and exposed glaring security vulnerabilities.

Security improvement is a priority of the decade-long Louvre New Renaissance plan launched last year, with an estimated cost of up to 800 million euros (£683 million) to modernise infrastructure, ease crowding and give the Mona Lisa a dedicated gallery by 2031.