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Police in France are urgently trying to retrieve extremely valuable jewels taken from the Paris museum in a daring daylight robbery, but experts are concerned it may already be too late to recover them.

At the heart of Paris this past Sunday, thieves broke into the top tourist attraction worldwide, making off with eight precious artifacts before escaping via motor scooters in a audacious theft that lasted approximately eight minutes.

Expert art detective an expert in the field told the BBC he feared the jewels may already be "long gone", having been broken up into many fragments.

Experts suggest the stolen jewels may be disposed of for a small part of their true price and taken out of French territory, additional specialists have said.

Potential Suspects Behind the Robbery

The group acted professionally, as the detective stated, shown by the speed with which they got inside and outside of the building with such efficiency.

"As you might expect, for an average individual, you don't wake up one day believing, I will become a criminal, and begin with the Louvre Museum," he said.

"This won't be their first heist," he added. "They've carried out previous crimes. They feel certain and they thought, we might get away with this attempt, and proceeded."

Additionally demonstrating the skill of the gang is treated as important, a specialist police unit with a "high success rate in solving significant crimes" has been given responsibility with locating the perpetrators.

Authorities have stated they believe the robbery is linked to a criminal organization.

Sophisticated gangs of this type usually pursue two main goals, Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau stated. "Either to act for the benefit of a client, or to acquire valuable gems to conduct money laundering operations."

The expert believes it is extremely difficult to sell the items as complete pieces, and he explained stealing-to-order for a specific client is something that typically occurs in Hollywood films.

"Nobody wants to handle a piece so hot," he elaborated. "You can't display it to your friends, you can't bequeath it to family, you cannot sell it."

Potential £10m Value

The expert thinks the artifacts will be taken apart and separated, along with gold elements and precious metals liquefied and the jewels cut up into smaller components that will be nearly impossible to connect to the Paris heist.

Jewellery historian a renowned expert, creator of the digital series focusing on gemstones and was the famous fashion magazine's gemstone expert for two decades, told the BBC the thieves had "specifically chosen" the most significant gemstones from the institution's artifacts.

The "magnificent perfect gems" are expected to be extracted of their mountings and disposed of, she said, with the exception of the crown from Empress Eugénie which contains smaller gems mounted in it and was "too dangerous to handle," she continued.

This could explain why it was dropped during the escape, together with one other item, and recovered by police.

The imperial headpiece that disappeared, features exceptionally uncommon organic pearls which have a very large value, authorities indicate.

While the items are considered being beyond valuation, the historian expects them will be disposed of for a small percentage of their value.

"They will go to someone who is willing to take possession," she explained. "Many people will seek for the stolen goods – the thieves will accept what they can get."

The precise value might they bring as payment if sold on? When asked about the estimated price of the haul, the detective stated the cut-up parts could be worth "multiple millions."

The jewels and taken gold could fetch up to ten million pounds (€11.52m; thirteen million dollars), says an industry expert, senior official of a prominent jeweler, an online jeweller.

The expert explained the perpetrators will require an experienced professional to remove the gems, and a professional diamond cutter to modify the larger recognisable stones.

Smaller stones that were not easily identifiable might be marketed immediately and despite challenges to tell the specific worth of each piece removed, the larger ones may amount to about £500,000 for individual pieces, he said.

"Reports indicate at least four of that size, thus totaling all those pieces along with the precious metal, one could estimate coming close to the estimated figure," he concluded.

"The gemstone and precious stone industry is liquid and numerous purchasers exist within gray markets that won't inquire regarding sources."

There are hopes that the stolen goods could reappear undamaged one day – but those hopes are fading as the days pass.

Historical examples exist – a jewelry display at the V&A Museum features a piece of jewelry previously stolen which eventually returned in an auction much later.

What is certain includes the French public are extremely upset by the Louvre heist, demonstrating a personal connection toward the treasures.

"There isn't always value gems because it's an issue of power, and that doesn't necessarily have a good connotation within French culture," Alexandre Leger, curatorial leader at established French company the prestigious firm, stated