Several French media outlets have learned that as a result of a domestic accident at the Louvre in late November, hundreds of exhibits in the Egyptology library were damaged – marking the second scandalous incident at the museum following the high-profile robbery.
According to media reports, the incident occurred on November 27 – a sewage pipe burst in the museum, resulting in "serious damage" to about 400 exhibits from the library, which houses publications on the study of ancient Egyptian monuments.
La Tribune de l’art claims that some publications were damaged to the extent that they can no longer be restored. Water from the "flood" reportedly seeped through the floor to the first floor right above the electrical cabinet, which in a worst-case scenario could have led to a fire.
BFMTV obtained an internal memo from the museum indicating that they were aware of the pipe issues even before the incident.
La Tribune de l'Art reports that those responsible for the department of Egyptian antiquities had been warning senior management for years about the risks to the exhibits in the event of a burst of the pipes hidden in the ceiling, which had been leaking periodically and were known to be problematic – however, ultimately nothing was done.
Recall that in October, the Louvre made headlines due to a scandalous 7-minute robbery of the Apollo Gallery, during which criminals stole jewels belonging to Napoleon and Empress Eugénie. The stolen jewels have yet to be found – except for those that the criminals dropped during their escape.
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