It is no exaggeration to say that no other museum in the world can compare in popularity with the Louvre. This is one of the largest and most famous buildings, which is as much a symbol of the French capital as the Eiffel Tower or Notre Dame. About 10 million people visit it annually. The Louvre collections number up to 400 thousand exhibits, although only ten percent of them are exhibited in the halls. The rest are either stored and waiting for their time, or travel to various museums around the world to participate in temporary exhibitions.
Visitors, first of all, want to see with their own eyes the mysterious "Gioconda" - "Mona Lisa". The 77x53 painting is covered with thick bulletproof glass, and is constantly flanked by two guards and numerous admirers.
Before telling you about the Louvre's collections, I will briefly introduce you to the history of the origin of this building.
In the 12th century, King Philip II built a fortress to protect against Viking attacks. By the way, the origin of the word "Louvre" is still shrouded in mystery. According to one version, in the Frankish language it meant "watchtower". However, "Louvre" means "wolf forest" in French, and it was built on the site of a former hunting lodge. In 1541, Francis I began construction of a palace on the site of a fortress. The building was rebuilt several times and acquired its modern architectural appearance only in 1857, but it has always been the main residence of the French monarchs. In 1674, Louis XIV moved the royal palace to Versailles. After the French Revolution, the National Assembly issued a decree declaring the Louvre a museum, and on August 10, 1793, it was opened to the public.
Today, the Louvre contains many works of art, ranging from the 7th century BC to the 1850s. The collections are arranged on five levels in three interconnected wings, each named after a famous French figure: Richelieu (1585-1642), minister of Ludovico III, Siuli (1559-1641), minister of Henri IV, and Denon (1747-1825), the first director of the Louvre.
You will receive a free Louvre map at the box office and at each entrance.
The most famous entrance to the Louvre is the glass pyramid, the prototype of the Great Pyramid of Giza. It was created to modernize the museum, expand the Richelieu Wing, increase tourist flow and reduce visitor queues. The pyramid consists of 673 glass plates. It is 22 meters high and weighs 180 tons.
In the Louvre, you will see many collections such as Ancient East, Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, Islamic art, sculptures, paintings, art objects and much more.
There are many halls and galleries in the Louvre. Let's mention a few.
One of them is the Apollo Gallery:
The mysterious Sans diamond (55 carats, 11 grams) is kept here. It was discovered in India in the 11th century, and it has been in the Louvre since 1978 thanks to Lord Astor, who bought the stone for 1 million dollars.
The Hall of Hammurabi's Laws. The famous phrase "An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth" is carved here:
The Hall of Ancient Egypt. One of its exhibits is a sculpture of the Sphinx:
Ancient Greece, Rome and the Etruscans. Sarcophagi, vases and other items of the Etruscan civilization, Roman statues, gold and silver items, unique mosaics and frescoes of the ancient city of Pompeii, destroyed by a volcano, are presented here.
Napoleon III's Apartments:
The Grand Gallery is 256 meters long:
Among the sculptures, it is worth noting the Venus de Milo by Alexander of Antioch (130-100 BC):
Nike, goddess of victory (2nd century BC, author unknown):
"Cupid and Psyche" by Antonio Canova:
"Slaves" by Michelangelo:
"The Horses of Marly" by Guillaume Cousteau and others.
The pride of the Louvre is its collection of paintings. It contains more than 6,000 paintings created by European artists from the end of the 13th century to 1848 (later works are collected in the Musée d'Orsay). Paintings by French and Northern European artists are collected in the Richelieu Wing and the Square Hall, and Spanish and Italian masters are on the ground floor in the Denon Gallery. Which one should we name? We have already mentioned Leonardo da Vinci's "Mona Lisa" above. For example, let's note Theodore Gericault and his "The Raft of the Medusa":
"The Initiation of Napoleon as Emperor" by Jacques Louis David:
"Liberty on the Barricades" by Eugene Delacroix:
Enjoy masterpieces by Leonardo da Vinci, Johannes Vermeer, Titian, Raphael, Rubens, Botticelli, El Greco, Caravaggio, Bosch, Durer and others.
Entrance to the Louvre: from the pyramid (main entrance), from the Carrousel Arch, from the Lion Gate (in the right wing of the museum), from the Rue de Rivoli - rue de Rivoli, 93 (in the left wing of the museum), from the underground entrance of the Carrousel du Louvre shopping center, rue de Rivoli, 99, from the metro station Palais Royal Musee du Louvre.
How to get to the Louvre:
- by metro: yellow line 1 or pink line 7 (station Palais Royal Musee du Louvre) or line 1 (station Louvre Rivoli).
- by bus, №21, 24, 27, 39, 48, 68, 69, 72, 81,95. They all stop at the main entrance.
The museum is open every day except Tuesday, 9.00-18.00. Wednesdays and Fridays - 9.00-21.45. Closed on January 1, May 1 and December 25.
Tickets are 17 euros, under 18s are free.
To buy tickets online or for more information, visit the official website: https://www.louvre.fr/en.
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