The Louvre has begun to translate promises to tighten security made in the weeks following the sensational theft that hit one of France’s iconic cultural heritage sites last October into concrete action. On Tuesday, Dec. 23, skilled workers installed metal bars on the windows of the Galerie d’Apollon, the space that housed the stolen crown jewels and was targeted by thieves during a daylight robbery.
The operation took place in the early morning hours, when a team of technicians intervened on the balcony outside the gallery. A large metal grill was raised by a crane and attached to the tall French doors facing the outside, the same ones through which the robbers had broken into the museum. The installation of the bars represents one of the emergency measures decided immediately after the robbery, as the Louvre’s deputy director, Francis Steinbock, explained to Agence France-Presse.
According to Steinbock, the intervention is part of a package of decisions taken in response to critical issues that emerged after the robbery and to reassure institutions and the public about the museum’s ability to protect its collections. “We had committed to doing this before the end of the year,” said the deputy director, emphasizing that the reinstallation of the grills was planned on a fast-track basis. Steinbock also pointed out that discussions on securing other windows in the complex were currently underway, suggesting that the intervention at the Galerie d’Apollon might not remain an isolated case.
The decision to reinstall the bars also has symbolic value, as it marks a return to protection solutions that had been adopted in the past. The director of the Louvre, Laurence des Cars, had recalled last week, during a hearing before French lawmakers, that a similar grille had been removed between 2003 and 2004 during restoration work at the Galerie d’Apollon. On that occasion, the aim had been to enhance the architectural openness and brightness of the gallery, but sacrificing a safety element that has now proved crucial. Des Cars had assured that the grill would be reinstalled before Christmas, a commitment the museum has fulfilled.
The installation of the bars is the most recent piece in a series of measures put in place in recent months, while security standards at the world’s most visited museum have come under intense scrutiny. Indeed, the October 19 theft raised questions about the vulnerability of one of France’s most heavily guarded cultural sites.
For the Louvre, however, the challenge is particularly delicate. The museum must reconcile the need to protect priceless works and treasures with the need to ensure accessibility and the aesthetic experience for visitors. The reinstallation of the bars, removed 20 years ago in the name of greater visual openness, testifies to a change in priorities imposed by events. The October robbery demonstrated that even an institution with extraordinary resources and expertise can be vulnerable, and that security remains a fragile balance between prevention, technology and the human factor.
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| Louvre installs bars at window where thieves entered |
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