The loot stolen from the Louvre during the weekend heist is valued at more than $100 million, a French prosecutor said Tuesday, as scrutiny mounted over security at the country's cultural institutions.

Thieves on Sunday made off with priceless royal jewels from the Louvre museum in a brazen daylight robbery which lasted just seven minutes.

"The Louvre curator estimated the damages to be 88 million euros," or $102 million, said Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau, calling it an "extraordinary" sum.

But she said the greater loss was to France's historical heritage, adding that the thieves would not pocket the full windfall if they had "the very bad idea of melting down these jewels".

The theft is the latest from French museums in recent months, and has left authorities scrambling to increase

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