Additional Coverage:
- Pipe burst at Louvre damages 300-400 rare books in Egyptian antiquities library collection (foxnews.com)
Paris, France – The world-renowned Louvre Museum has once again found itself in hot water, as a burst pipe in its Egyptian antiquities library has damaged hundreds of rare books. This incident comes just weeks after a brazen jewel heist rocked the museum, raising concerns about its aging infrastructure and security protocols.
According to Francis Steinbock, the museum’s deputy administrator, the flooding occurred in one of the three rooms housing the Egyptian antiquities library. “We have identified between 300 and 400 works, the count is ongoing,” Steinbock told BFM TV, adding that “no precious books” were lost. Many of the damaged items were periodicals and archaeology journals regularly used by Egyptologists.
Museum staff are currently assessing the full extent of the damage and have begun the painstaking process of drying the soaked books, including dehumidifying them page by page with Buffard paper and modifying plants.
The art site La Tribune de l’Art attributed the burst pipe to deteriorating infrastructure, reporting that the department had long sought funding to protect its collection. Steinbock acknowledged that the issue had been known for years and stated that repairs were scheduled for September 2026.
This leak highlights the museum’s aging infrastructure, an issue brought to the forefront just weeks after thieves stole crown jewels in a daring daytime heist that exposed glaring security gaps. On October 19, a four-person team stormed the Louvre’s Apollo Gallery in broad daylight, making off with jewels valued at 88 million euros ($102 million) in less than eight minutes.
In the subsequent weeks, police arrested and charged four men suspected of involvement in the robbery. A woman was also arrested, though she has denied involvement through her lawyer.
The stolen items, including a diamond-and-emerald necklace Napoleon gave to Empress Marie-Louise, jewels tied to 19th-century Queens Marie-Amélie and Hortense, and Empress Eugénie’s pearl-and-diamond tiara, have not yet been recovered. However, the emerald-set imperial crown of Napoleon III’s wife, Empress Eugénie, containing over 1,300 diamonds, was later found outside the museum.