Thieves have made off with priceless Swedish crown jewels, in a daring heist reminiscent of a Hollywood movie.

According to Swedish radio the offenders took two crowns and a royal orb known as a ‘riksapple’ from the ancient cathedral in Strangnas, west of Stockholm, around lunchtime on Tuesday.

They were the funeral crowns of Karl IX and his wife Queen Kristina, who died in the early 17th century.

Two men were seen to jump into a motor boat moored just below the church.