Image source, Reuters

French authorities are investigating after a robbery at the Louvre museum in Paris saw a group of thieves get away with "priceless" jewellery on moped this morning.

Large numbers of tourists who wanted to see the Mona Lisa had their plans thwarted, after the Louvre said it would stay closed for "exceptional reasons".

The thieves targeted the museum's Apollo Gallery, which houses what remains of France's crown jewels.

They appeared to have used a mechanical ladder to access an upper floor, where they broke a window to enter the building.

Paris prosecutors say the damage is being assessed, while Culture Minister Rachida Dati says one stolen item was found near the museum after the thieves had fled. French media reports say the item was a crown belonging to Napoleon III's wife Eugénie, which was damaged.

Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez described the stolen jewels as "priceless" and "of immeasurable heritage value".

We're closing our live coverage now, but you can read more about the heist in our news story here.

Image source, Reuters

American tourists Jim and Joan Carpenter were inside the Louvre museum this morning, when security guards urged them to leave.

"We were just ready to go in to see the Mona Lisa when they swept us out of the gallery," Joan tells Reuters news agency.

The couple say they were ushered down the stairs, past the Apollo Gallery - where the robbery took place - and out through an emergency exit that looked like it was rarely used.

Jim says there was "lots of confusion" in the museum, and guards just told the couple there were "technical difficulties" when they asked what was going on.

"I knew something was up because of the way they swept the whole museum," says Joan.

"But it's great," Jim adds. "This is our last day of a long trip and it's the most exciting part today."

The BBC's Paris correspondent Andrew Harding is at the scene of the heist as police investigate.

Click play below to watch his report.

Investigations are continuing in Paris after thieves broke into the Louvre and stole a number of items of jewellery.

Much of the authorities' attention has been centred on a small truck parked next to the museum - with a ladder stretched out to a first-floor balcony.

Here are the latest images coming to us from France.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

According to French media reports, authorities have recovered a damaged crown near the Louvre which reportedly belonged to Empress Eugenie.

Born in Granada, Spain, in 1826, Empress Eugenie married Napoleon III, who ruled France as president from 1848 to 1852 and emperor from 1852 until 1870, when he was overthrown.

Napoleon III then spent the last three years of his life in exile in England, with Empress Eugenie and his only son, after he was captured and deposed during the Franco-Prussian war.

When his son - also Napoleon - died in 1879, Empress Eugenie built a monastery and imperial mausoleum in Farnborough.

Empress Eugenie was entombed to the imperial crypt at St Michael's Abbey after she died in 1920.

Earlier, we reported comments from Culture Minister Rachida Dati who said one stolen item had been found near the Louvre as the thieves made their getaway.

Several French media outlets are reporting that the item is a 19th Century crown belonging to Empress Eugenie and has been found broken.

Eugenie was the wife of Napoleon III, who ruled France in that era.

According to Louvre's website, the crown features golden eagles and is covered in 1,354 diamonds and 56 emeralds.

Hugh Schofield
Paris correspondent

As we reported earlier, thefts from the Louvre are uncommon due to the museum's tight security.

However, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said in an interview earlier today that it was “well-known" that French museums in general are "vulnerable”.

Two recent thefts have been in the news. In September, thieves took gold worth €600,000 from the Museum of Natural History in Paris.

In the same month, the Museum of Porcelain in Limoges was broken into, and items worth €6.5m taken.

As we have been reporting, the heist took place at about 09:30 local time (08:30 BST) - just half an hour after the museum had opened its doors to the public.

This meant large numbers of visitors had to be evacuated after the museum announced it would close.

You can see some of the confusion near the Louvre's famous pyramid entrance in the video above.

How common are thefts from the Louvre?published at 13:59 BST 19 October

13:59 BST 19 October

Hugh Schofield
Paris Correspondent

Thefts from the museum are rare, thanks to its tight security, but they have happened – most famously in 1911 when Leonardo de Vinci’s masterpiece the Mona Lisa was taken.

Poet Guillaume Apollinaire and painter Pablo Picasso were both questioned by police. But, the culprit turned out to be an Italian man who – out of a sense of national pride – wanted the painting brought back to Italy.

It was found three years later in Florence and returned to Paris. At the time the painting was not as famous as it is now.

Separately, in 1983 some items of 16th century armour disappeared and were only rediscovered in 2011.

Most recently, a painting by the 19th century artist Camille Corot was taken in 1998. Le Chemin de Sevres (The Sevres Road) was simply removed from the wall without anyone seeing. The theft prompted an important overhaul of security. It has never been found.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

If you're just joining us, the authorities in France say priceless jewellery has been stolen from the Louvre museum in Paris this morning. This is what we now know:

• Thieves broke into the museum at about 09:30 local time (08:30 BST) - shortly before the attraction opened to visitors - and has been shut for the day as a result

• Paris's prosecutor's office added it had opened an investigation into the "theft of jewellery"
• The thieves are thought to have gained entry via an upstairs window after using a type of mechanised lift to access the first-floor, writes the BBC's Paris correspondent Andrew Harding
• Interior Minister Laurent Nunez says three or four thieves were able to open two display cases and left the scene on motorbikes
• Culture Minister Rachida Dati told French TV that in their haste to flee, one stolen item was found underneath the Louvre
• The targeted gallery - in the museum's south side - holds what remains of France's crown jewels

We are staying across the situation and will bring you updates as we get them.

Image source, Getty Images

French Culture Minister Rachida Dati has just given an interview to French TV station TF1 where she says that an item of stolen jewellery has been found.

The piece was found near the scene of the heist, apparently after having been dropped. Dati says it is "being assessed". There has been no official confirmation of what the item is.

Describing the thieves, the minister says they "acted professionally, without any violence and without any panic".

What is in the Louvre's Apollo gallery?published at 12:40 BST 19 October

12:40 BST 19 October

Hugh Schofield
Paris Correspondent

The Gallery of Apollo, which the thieves are said to have targeted, houses what is left of the French crown jewels.

These were largely lost or sold after the French Revolution, but some precious items remained.

Pieces housed there included those acquired after the Revolution for the Emperor Napoleon, his nephew Napoleon III, and their wives the empresses Marie-Louise and Eugenie.

The Louvre’s website says that the most precious items in the gallery were three diamonds known as the Regent, the Sancy and the Hortensia.

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

As we have been reporting, the Louvre in Paris has been shut for the day following a heist in the world- famous museum.

The authorities are investigating as details about exactly what happen continue to emerge.

Police and museum staff have also been having to deal with large crowds of people who have been affected by the sudden closure of the very popular tourist destination.

Andrew Harding
Paris correspondent, at the scene

Image source, Getty Images

French police have sealed off access to the Louvre museum, including one major road along the riverbank in front of it.

The focus of the investigation is on the south-east corner of the building, overlooking the River Seine.

A large, extendable ladder is visible, the sort of thing you might see on a fire engine or roofing company’s vehicle.

It is mounted onto a mechanised lift, the type used all around Paris to deliver furniture to apartments on upper floors.

The top of the ladder touches a balcony, which appears to be how the three thieves accessed one of the upper floors.

I have spoken to the mayor of the local area who can’t confirm whether the ladder was already there for maintenance work, or whether the thieves deliberately placed it there.

The area around is full of tourists milling about unable to access the Louvre anymore on what is an overcast day.

Hugh Schofield
Paris Correspondent

We are now getting more details about how the robbery unfolded.

The French Interior Ministry says that at around 09:30 local time (08:30 BST) a number of individuals got into the Apollo Gallery via a window, which they broke.

Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez says three or four thieves involved used a goods lift on a truck outside the building.

Once inside, the thieves stole jewels that were in display cases and then left on motorbikes. Nunez says the robbery took seven minutes.

A precise list of what was stolen is being drawn up.

Beyond their commercial value, the ministry says the items have an incalculable historical and cultural value.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Reuters

The Parisian Public Prosecutor's Office confirms it has opened an investigation into suspected "organised theft and criminal conspiracy to commit a crime".

It confirms there has been a "theft of jewellery" at the Louvre and that the investigation is being supported by an investigative service that fights illegal trafficking of cultural goods.

"The damage is currently being assessed," the prosecutor's office says. "Investigations are ongoing."

Image source, Getty Images

Located in Paris, the Louvre is the largest museum in the world with nearly 73,000 square metres of exhibition space - more than the size of ten football pitches.

It was originally built in 1546 as a palace for the French royal family. King Francis I, its first resident, was a lover of art and intended the Louvre to showcase his collection.

Subsequent kings greatly expanded the crown's art holdings, with Louis XIV even acquiring the art collection of English King Charles I, after his execution in the English Civil War.

The collection remained mainly private until the outbreak of the French Revolution in 1789, and in 1793 the Louvre opened as a public art gallery.

Today, the Louvre displays more than 35,000 works of art - including the famous Mona Lisa painting by Leonardo da Vinci - and attracts around 30,000 daily visitors.

Image source, Getty Images

Hugh Schofield
Paris Correspondent

Details are sketchy but French media are reporting that three masked men broke into the Louvre shortly after opening time this morning.

They’re said to have used a goods lift to get access to the Apollo Gallery, on the Seine River side of the museum.

This ornate room is where what remains of France’s crown jewels are kept.

The thieves are said to have been carrying small chainsaws.

They made off with nine items of jewellery and they escaped on a motor-scooter. The value of the haul is being evaluated.

Footage on social media appears to show security and members of the public locked inside the Louvre museum following the robbery.

One person writes on X: "Just got to the Louvre and can see the security are locked inside! Everyone at the gates is being told that they cannot go in and that it is shut for today."

Image source, X / @whatyouthinktom

If you're just joining us, France's Culture Minister, Rachida Dati, says there has been a robbery at the world-famous Louvre museum in Paris.

Here's what we know so far:

• The incident took place this morning as the museum opened
• There are no injuries, she says
• The police are at the museum and an investigation is under way
• A statement from the Louvre says it will remain closed for the day due to "exceptional reasons"

And here's what we don't yet know:

• We don't know what - if anything - has been taken from the museum
• We do not know yet who was involved in the incident
• It's also unclear how the robbery occurred

We'll keep monitoring the situation and bring you updates as we receive them.