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Police in France are urgently trying to recover priceless gemstones robbed from the Paris museum in a daring broad daylight theft, although specialists are concerned it could be past the point of recovery to get them back.

At the heart of Paris on Sunday, thieves broke into the top tourist attraction worldwide, taking eight cherished pieces before escaping on scooters in a daring heist that was completed in under ten minutes.

Expert art detective an expert in the field expressed his view he feared the stolen items may already be "long gone", after being taken apart into numerous components.

It is highly likely the pieces will be sold for a mere percentage of their value and smuggled out of France, several authorities noted.

Who May Be Behind the Theft

The perpetrators were professionals, Mr Brand believes, evidenced by the way they managed through the museum of the Louvre so quickly.

"You know, for an average individual, people don't suddenly decide in the morning believing, I should become a criminal, let's start with the Louvre Museum," he noted.

"This won't be their first heist," he said. "They've carried out previous crimes. They feel certain and they believed, it might work out with this attempt, and took the chance."

Additionally demonstrating the professionalism of the group is treated as important, a specialist police unit with a "high success rate in solving major theft cases" has been given responsibility with locating the perpetrators.

Law enforcement have stated they believe the heist relates to a criminal organization.

Criminal organizations like these usually pursue two main goals, legal official the prosecutor stated. "Either they operate on behalf of a financier, or to secure valuable gems to conduct illegal financial activities."

The detective suggests it would be extremely difficult to sell the items in their original form, and he explained commissioned theft for a specific client is a scenario that mainly exists in fictional stories.

"No one desires to handle an item this recognizable," he elaborated. "You can't display it to acquaintances, you cannot leave it to family, you cannot sell it."

Estimated £10m Worth

The expert thinks the objects will be taken apart and disassembled, with the gold and precious metals liquefied and the gems re-cut into smaller components that could be extremely difficult to track back to the Louvre robbery.

Jewellery historian Carol Woolton, who presents the audio program focusing on gemstones and formerly worked as Vogue magazine's gemstone expert for two decades, stated the perpetrators had "specifically chosen" the most significant gemstones from the Louvre's collection.

The "beautiful large exquisite jewels" will probably be removed from the jewelry pieces and sold, she said, excluding the headpiece of Empress Eugénie which features less valuable pieces incorporated within it and was "too recognizable to keep," she continued.

This could explain the reason it was abandoned while fleeing, in addition to another piece, and located by officials.

The imperial headpiece which was stolen, features exceptionally uncommon authentic pearls which are incredibly valuable, experts say.

While the items have been described as being priceless, the historian believes they will be disposed of for a fraction of their worth.

"They will go to individuals who are able to handle these," she stated. "Everyone will be looking for these items – they will take any amount available."

What specific amount might they bring as payment upon being marketed? When asked about the possible worth of the stolen goods, the detective said the dismantled components may amount to "many millions."

The precious stones and removed precious metal may bring up to a significant sum (over eleven million euros; millions in US currency), according to a jewelry specialist, senior official of 77 Diamonds, an online jeweller.

He stated the perpetrators will require an experienced professional to extract the stones, and an expert gem cutter to modify the larger recognisable stones.

Minor components that couldn't be easily recognized could be sold quickly and despite challenges to tell the specific worth of all the stones taken, the larger ones could be worth approximately £500,000 for individual pieces, he said.

"Reports indicate a minimum of four that large, therefore combining each of them up plus the precious metal, it's likely reaching £10m," he stated.

"The gemstone and precious stone industry is active and there are many buyers within gray markets that avoid questioning regarding sources."

Hope persists that the items might resurface intact eventually – but those hopes are narrowing with each passing day.

There is a precedent – a jewelry display at the V&A Museum includes an artifact previously stolen which eventually returned in an auction many years after.

Without doubt includes the French public are extremely upset regarding the theft, demonstrating a cultural bond to the jewels.

"French people don't always appreciate jewelry as it symbolizes a matter concerning authority, and this isn't typically have a good connotation among French people," Alexandre Leger, director of historical collections at Parisian jewelry house the historical business, said