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Police in France are making every effort to locate extremely valuable jewels taken from the Louvre Museum in a daring daylight robbery, yet authorities have warned it may already be past the point of recovery to save them.

Within the French capital this past Sunday, thieves broke into the most popular museum globally, making off with eight cherished pieces then fleeing on scooters in a daring heist that lasted approximately just minutes.

Dutch art detective a renowned specialist told the BBC he suspects the stolen items could be "long gone", having been broken up into hundreds of parts.

There is a strong chance the pieces will be sold for a fraction of their worth and illegally transported from French territory, additional specialists indicated.

Possible Culprits Behind the Robbery

The thieves acted professionally, Mr Brand believes, shown by the speed with which they got inside and outside of the museum so quickly.

"You know, as a normal person, one doesn't just get up in the morning thinking, I'm going to become a criminal, choosing as first target the Louvre Museum," he noted.

"This likely isn't the first time they've done this," he said. "They've carried out previous crimes. They're self-assured and they believed, it might work out with this attempt, and took the chance."

Additionally demonstrating the skill of the thieves is treated as important, a dedicated task force with a "high success rate in resolving significant crimes" has been given responsibility with locating the perpetrators.

Authorities have said they believe the heist relates to an organised crime network.

Sophisticated gangs like these generally have two primary purposes, Paris prosecutor a senior official stated. "Either they operate working for a client, or to secure expensive jewelry to carry out money laundering operations."

Mr Brand thinks it is highly unlikely to market the jewels as complete pieces, and he said stealing-to-order for a private collector is something that mainly exists in movies.

"Nobody wants to acquire an artifact so hot," he explained. "It cannot be shown publicly, you cannot leave it to your children, it cannot be sold."

Estimated £10m Value

Mr Brand believes the stolen items will be dismantled and separated, including the gold and silver melted down and the jewels cut up into less recognizable pieces that could be extremely difficult to trace back to the museum theft.

Historical jewelry specialist an authority in the field, who presents the podcast about historical jewelry and previously served as the prestigious publication's gemstone expert for many years, stated the thieves had "specifically chosen" the most valuable gemstones from the institution's artifacts.

The "impressively sized perfect gems" would likely be dug out from their settings and sold, she noted, with the exception of the crown from the historical figure which contains smaller gems incorporated within it and proved to be "too dangerous to possess," she continued.

This could explain why they left it behind during the escape, along with one other item, and recovered by police.

The royal crown that was taken, contains extremely rare organic pearls which command enormous prices, experts say.

Although the artifacts are considered being priceless, Ms Woolton anticipates they could be marketed for a minimal part of their true price.

"They'll likely end up to individuals who are able to take possession," she said. "Many people will seek for the stolen goods – they will take any amount available."

How much exactly would they generate financially when disposed of? When asked about the potential value of the loot, Mr Brand indicated the separated elements might value "several million."

The precious stones and gold stolen might achieve approximately a significant sum (millions in euros; $13.4m), stated by Tobias Kormind, chief executive of 77 Diamonds, an internet-based gem dealer.

He stated the gang must have an experienced professional to remove the gems, and a skilled stone worker to change the bigger identifiable gems.

Smaller stones that couldn't be easily recognized could be sold quickly and while it was hard to tell the exact price of all the stones stolen, the more significant gems may amount to about half a million pounds each, he explained.

"We know there are at least four that large, thus totaling all those pieces up plus the gold components, you are probably approaching ten million," he stated.

"The jewelry and precious stone industry has buyers and numerous purchasers exist in less regulated areas that avoid questioning about origins."

Some optimism remains that the items might resurface intact one day – but those hopes are narrowing with each passing day.

There is a precedent – a jewelry display at the London museum includes a piece of jewelry stolen in 1948 which eventually returned in a public event several decades later.

Definitely are numerous French citizens feel profoundly disturbed by the Louvre heist, expressing a cultural bond to the jewels.

"There isn't always value gems because it's a question of privilege, and this isn't typically have a good connotation in France," a jewelry authority, director of historical collections at Parisian jewelry house the historical business, stated