The Palais des Louvre was one the palace of the ultimate kings and the biggest building in the entire world. Today, the vast horseshoe- shaped palace, built in stages over eight centuries, with its striking pyramid entry, houses the world’s grandest collection of art treasures.
Once you are inside, take a moment to enjoy the modern pyramid- entry a work of art itself. It leads to three wings. You can start with the Denon wing.
The Louvre’s huge collections cover art history from ancient time to about 1851. It can be overwhelming. A key to enjoying your visit- don’t eve try to cover it all. Enjoy an excuse to return.
Remember to look up for a sense at how long before it as a museum this was Europe’s ultimate palace and home of its mightiest kings. The collection includes royal French regalia such as the crown of Louis XV and the crown Napoleon wore on his coronation.
This museum is one of the world’s oldest, opened to the public during the French Revolution in 1793.
The statue of dinged Victory seems to declare that the Louvre’s ancient collection is Europe’s finest. Two centuries before Christ, the wind- whipped masterpiece of Hellenistic Greek art stood on a bluff, celebrating a great naval victory.
There must be more famous paintings here than in any other museum. The crowded grand Gallery, while a quarter mile long, displays only a small part of the Louvre’s collection. All the painting represent some period – renaissance, neo-classical and romantic.
The most famous portrait might be the Mona Lisa- believed to be of the wife of a Florentine merchant is Leonardo’s crowd-pleasing masterpiece. With her enigmatic smile , she seems to enjoy all the attention.
Romanticism meant putting feeling over intellect, passion over restrained judgment. It encouraged artist to be emotional and to create what the heart felt. There are many paintings from this period.
Make sure that the department you plan to visit will be open because some departments such as the French paintings collection is closed on certain days of the week. Find one painting, one sculpture, one art object – and make it yours.
