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Law enforcement in France are making every effort to retrieve priceless gemstones robbed from the Louvre in a audacious daytime heist, although specialists are concerned it might be past the point of recovery to get them back.

Within the French capital over the weekend, thieves broke into the world's most-visited museum, making off with eight cherished pieces before escaping using scooters in a daring heist that lasted approximately eight minutes.

Dutch art detective an expert in the field told the BBC he feared the stolen items may already be "long gone", once separated into many fragments.

There is a strong chance the stolen jewels could be sold off for a fraction of their worth and taken out of the country, several authorities indicated.

Potential Suspects Behind the Theft

The group acted professionally, according to the expert, shown by the speed with which they got in and out of the Louvre so quickly.

"Realistically speaking, for an average individual, people don't suddenly decide overnight thinking, I will become a burglar, let's start with the Louvre," he said.

"This won't be the first time they've done this," he added. "They have done previous crimes. They feel certain and they believed, we could succeed with this, and went for it."

As further evidence the expertise of the thieves is considered significant, a dedicated task force with a "strong track record in solving major theft cases" has been given responsibility with tracking them down.

Authorities have stated they think the heist is linked to a sophisticated gang.

Sophisticated gangs such as these generally have two objectives, legal official the prosecutor explained. "Either they operate working for a client, or to secure precious stones to perform money laundering operations."

Mr Brand thinks it would be highly unlikely to market the jewels in their original form, and he noted stealing-to-order for a specific client is a scenario that mainly exists in movies.

"Few people wish to acquire a piece so identifiable," he explained. "You cannot show it to acquaintances, you can't bequeath it to heirs, you cannot sell it."

Possible £10m Price Tag

The expert thinks the objects will be taken apart and disassembled, with the gold and silver components melted and the precious stones divided into smaller stones that will be virtually impossible to trace back to the Louvre robbery.

Historical jewelry specialist Carol Woolton, creator of the audio program focusing on gemstones and previously served as the famous fashion magazine's jewelry specialist for two decades, told the BBC the perpetrators had "cherry-picked" the most valuable treasures from the Louvre's collection.

The "beautiful large perfect gems" would likely be removed from their settings and sold, she noted, excluding the crown from the historical figure which contains smaller gems set in it and was considered "too dangerous to possess," she continued.

This potentially clarifies the reason it was abandoned as they got away, along with another piece, and recovered by police.

The royal crown that disappeared, contains extremely rare authentic pearls which have a very large value, specialists confirm.

While the items have been described as having immeasurable worth, Ms Woolton expects them to be sold for a minimal part of their true price.

"They're destined to buyers who is willing to acquire such items," she explained. "Everyone will be looking for these items – the thieves will accept any amount available."

The precise value could they fetch financially upon being marketed? When asked about the estimated price of the stolen goods, the expert stated the dismantled components could be worth "multiple millions."

The jewels and taken gold could fetch as much as a significant sum (over eleven million euros; $13.4m), stated by a jewelry specialist, managing director of 77 Diamonds, an online jeweller.

He told the BBC the perpetrators must have an experienced professional to extract the stones, and a skilled stone worker to alter the more noticeable pieces.

Less noticeable gems that were harder to trace might be marketed immediately and while it was hard to determine the precise value of each piece removed, the bigger stones might value about £500,000 each, he noted.

"Reports indicate a minimum of four of that size, thus totaling all those pieces up plus the gold, one could estimate coming close to £10m," he stated.

"The diamond and gemstone market is liquid and numerous purchasers exist on the fringes that avoid questioning regarding sources."

Some optimism remains that the items might resurface undamaged one day – but those hopes are diminishing over time.

There is a precedent – the Cartier exhibition at the London museum includes an artifact previously stolen before reappearing in a public event many years after.

Without doubt is many in France feel profoundly disturbed by the Louvre heist, having felt a cultural bond with the artifacts.

"There isn't always like jewellery because it's an issue of privilege, and this isn't typically receive favorable interpretation among French people," Alexandre Leger, curatorial leader at French jeweller Maison Vever, explained