Real-life heist reminiscent of Netflix’s Lupin

A 16Th-century gold and silverencrusted armour set stolen nearly 40 years ago from the Louvre in a mystery heist evocative of the hit Netflix series Lupin has been recovered and returned to the museum.

On Wednesday, the Paris gallery announced that police had recovered a ceremonial helmet and plate of armour that date back to the Renaissance era and are believed to have been made in the region of Milan.

After disappearing off the radar for nearly four decades, the stolen artifacts resurfaced in Bordeaux earlier this year when a French military antiques expert was called in to appraise the pieces as part of a family inheritance.

The objects roused the suspicion of the expert who flagged the items to police. Through a national database of stolen artworks, investigators confirmed that the items had been stolen from the Louvre on May 31 1983, in a theft that remains an unsolved mystery.

The real-life art crime is reminiscent of the popular French Netflix series Lupin – released around the same time the items were discovered in January – about a master of disguises who pulls off a heist at the Louvre, stealing a necklace once worn by Marie Antoinette.

Police are investigating how the items ended up with the Bordeaux family.