PARIS, Tuesday, 18 November 2025, 7:00 AM EAT – The Louvre Museum in Paris announced on Monday the immediate closure of its nine-room Campana Gallery as a precautionary measure after an audit revealed significant structural weaknesses in the building. The decision compounds a period of intense scrutiny for the institution, which is still grappling with the fallout from a brazen €88 million jewel heist just one month ago and a subsequent government report criticising its security and maintenance priorities.

In a statement released on Monday, 17 November, the Louvre confirmed that engineers were investigating the integrity of “certain beams supporting the floors” of the offices located on the second floor of the Sully wing, directly above the gallery famed for its collection of Greek ceramics. While the museum stated the closure is not directly linked to the recent theft, it represents another significant operational and reputational challenge for the world-renowned cultural landmark, which welcomed 8.7 million visitors in 2024.

Systemic Failures Exposed

The structural alert follows a damning report from France's supreme audit body, the Court of Auditors, released in early November. The report, which covered the period from 2018 to 2024, found that the Louvre's management had consistently prioritised “visible and attractive operations” such as acquiring new artworks over essential, less glamorous spending on building maintenance and security upgrades. Pierre Moscovici, head of the court, described the October heist as a “deafening wake-up call” to the “wholly inadequate pace” of security modernisation.

The audit's findings were starkly illustrated on Sunday, 19 October 2025, when a gang disguised as construction workers stole eight pieces of the French Crown Jewels from the Galerie d'Apollon in a daylight raid that lasted less than eight minutes. The thieves escaped with jewels valued at approximately €88 million ($102 million). While four suspects have since been arrested, none of the priceless historical artifacts have been recovered.

A Global Challenge for Cultural Heritage

The twin crises at the Louvre—one of security, one of infrastructure—resonate with challenges faced by cultural institutions globally, including in Kenya. Museums are increasingly caught between the mandate to expand collections and public programming and the struggle to secure funding for the fundamental, often invisible, work of conservation and structural upkeep. A 2025 report by the International Council of Museums (ICOM) highlighted a persistent global decline in public funding for museums, forcing many to find alternative revenue streams while critical maintenance is often deferred.

In Kenya, the National Museums of Kenya (NMK) has faced similar pressures. Reports from the Office of the Auditor-General and news archives detail ongoing struggles with inadequate funding for the preservation of key heritage sites, which face risks from climate change, land encroachment, and general deterioration. The challenges at a global institution like the Louvre underscore the universal vulnerability of cultural heritage and the critical need for sustained investment in its protection.

As a precautionary measure, the 65 staff members working in the offices above the Campana Gallery have been relocated while engineers conduct a thorough assessment. The museum has not provided a timeline for the gallery's reopening. The closure, however, serves as a powerful symbol of the foundational cracks—both literal and figurative—appearing in one of the world's most important cultural custodians.