Musée du Louvre
Shown within Paris
Established	1793
Location	Palais Royal, Musée du Louvre, 75001 Paris, France
Visitor figures	8.3 million (2007)[1]
Director	Henri Loyrette
Curator	Marie-Laure de Rochebrune
Public transit access	Metro, Palais Royal -- Musée du Louvre
Website	www.louvre.fr

Coordinates: 48°51′37″N 2°20′15″E / 48.860395, 2.337599

The Louvre (French: Musée du Louvre) in Paris, France, is one of the world's most visited art museums.^[2][3] The collection contains nearly 35,000 pieces displayed over the structure's 60,000 square metres (650,000 sq ft).^[4] The museum is on the Right Bank, in the neighborhood referred to as the 1st arrondissement and lies between the Seine River and the Rue de Rivoli. The Louvre is slightly askew of the axe historique, a long architectural straightaway that cuts through the centre of Paris.^[5]

The structure originated as a palace during the Capetian dynasty under the reign of Philip II and was gradually developed into the structure visible today.^[6] It was used as an art depository from the time of François I, but it was not opened to the public until the French Revolution. At that time, the Louvre was intended to symbolize the progress of Liberty.

The museum's collection, divided among eight curatorial departments, contains some of the world's most celebrated artworks, such as Leonardo Da Vinci's Mona Lisa, The Virgin and Child with St. Anne, and Madonna of the Rocks; Jacques Louis David's Oath of the Horatii; Delacroix's Liberty Leading the People; and Alexandros of Antioch's Venus de Milo.

History

Le Palais du Louvre

The only portion of the medieval Louvre still visible today.^[5]

Main article: Palais du Louvre

The present-day Louvre may grew as a series of building projects completed over the past 800 years.^[7]A fortress was built under Philip Augustus from 1190 to 1202 to defend Paris from foreign attacks.^[8][9] It is unknown whether this was the first building to be constructed on that spot, although contemporaries referred to the early Louvre as the "New Tower", indicating a predecessor.^[6][8] The origin of the name Louvre is murky. The historian Mary Knight Potter contends that King Philip II of France referred to the structure as L'Œuvre (the masterpiece) because it was the largest building in 13th-century Paris. Henri Sauval proposes a derivation from a word leouar (castle, fortress) which he claims to have found in an "old Latin-Saxon glossary", but which has no independent verification, ^[5] while Henry Sutherland Edwards posits rouvre (oak), referring to the building's location in a forest.^[8]

The only portion still extant from this period is the foundation of the southeast corner.^[5] Additions were subsequently completed, notably by Charles V who, in 1358, built a defensive wall around the fortress and converted the Louvre into a royal residence, although later monarchs used it as a prison.^[9] Louis IX (Saint-Louis) added a dungeon and François I an annex.^[6] Additionally, François rebuilt the Louvre using plans of architect Pierre Lescot. Following François' death in 1547, his successor Henry II retained the architect, and the west and south sides of the Louvre were completed and Jean Goujon's bas-relief sculptures were added.^[10] Lescot's renovations modified the Louvre from a fortress to the style visible today.^[11]

In 1594, King Henry IV united the Palais du Louvre with the Palais des Tuileries. This "Grand Design" called for a Grande Galerie to connect to the Pavillon de Flore on the southern end and the Pavillon de Marsan to the north. Louis XIII (1610–43) completed the Denon Wing, begun in 1560 by Catherine de Medici.^[10][12] In 1624, the classical architects Le Vau and Lemercier completed the design of the Cour Carrée under Louis XIII and Louis XIV reigns, effectively quadrupling the size of the old courtyard.^[13] Progress on the building halted after Louis XIV chose Versailles as his residence. The Louvre remained unchanged until the 18th century, when it began its transformation into a museum under Louis XV. However, the transformation did not accelerate until the French Revolution.^[8][10]

French Revolution

The Richelieu Wing of the Louvre at night

The Louvre as a showplace for works of art dates from the time of François I. However it was not until the French Revolution that the royal Louvre collection became the "Muséum central des Arts" and opened to the public.^[8] The public display of art in France began in Paris at the Luxembourg Palace. This museum was inaugurated in October 1750 after publication of an article by La Font de Saint-Yvenne, who called for a public gallery, arguing that the national art treasures were being overlooked. He wanted the work to be displayed in the Louvre structure, but the Luxembourg Palace was chosen instead.^[14] This gallery contained about 99 works placed in two wings. The collection, open to all social classes, was an enormous success with French and foreign visitors alike. Despite this, Saint-Yvenne again criticized what he called the neglect of much of France's artistic treasures, and requests to make the Louvre a museum intensified. In 1780, the comte de Provence, the future Louis XVIII, began moving works from the Luxembourg Palace to the Palais de Louvre in response to these requests and to insinuations that the royal collection was not as grand as collections belonging to other members of the nobility.^[8][14]

On 10 August 1792, the Bourbon monarchy collapsed and Louis XVI was imprisoned. As part of the revolution, all art in the royal collection was declared to be national property (biens nationaux), and the National Assembly decided to turn the palace into a museum. The legislature declared that the collection was in disrepair from being "dispersed" and that the matter was "urgent".^[14] The royal collection was combined with Church property, which had been appropriated by the State in 1789.^[15] Further, the marquis de Marigny and his successor, the comte d'Angiviller began developing the Louvre's permanent collection, which was legally authorised on 6 May 1791.^[14]

Opening to the public

The museum officially opened to the public on 10 August 1793, with much fanfare, because the display of the nation's artistic treasures was seen to be based on the ideals of the revolution. The notion that the works which had once been reserved for the ancien régime were now viewable by the public was important to the nascent republic as a "benefit of Liberty".^[14] The name of the institution changed many times, from Muséum de la République, to Muséum Français, Muséum Central des Arts, and finally the Louvre.^[5] Particularly significant additions to the young collection were masterpieces from Italy (including the Laocoon and his sons and the Apollo Belvedere, both from the papal collection), which arrived in Paris in July 1798 with much pomp and ceremony. A Sèvres vase was commissioned for the occasion.^[8][14][15] Initially, the museum's opening was hectic as artists still lived in residence and works were placed randomly throughout the old palace. However, the republic dedicated a considerable sum, 100,000 livres per year, to help the institution expand its collection with works from abroad.^[5] From 1794 onwards, France's victorious revolutionary armies brought back increasing numbers of artworks from across Europe, aiming to establish the Louvre as a major European museum and a symbol of revolutionary progress.^[14]

Napoleon

Antonio Canova's Psyche Revived by Cupid's Kiss was commissioned in 1787, and the first version was donated to the Louvre after the reign of Napoleon I in 1824.^[16]

During Napoleon's conquests throughout Europe, the museum continued augmenting its collection. The building was redecorated and inaugurated in 1800. It was given its first director, Dominique Vivant, baron de Denon, by Napoléon after the Egyptian campaign of 1798–1801, and renamed the "Musée Napoléon" in 1803. Many works were added to its collection from countries such as Spain, Austria, Holland, and Italy. These were often met by gleeful Parisians, who escorted the works along the quais of the Seine to the museum.^[5]

After the French defeat at Waterloo, the former owners of many acquisitions sought their return. The administrators of the Louvre were loathe to comply, and hid some of the works within their private collections. Many foreign states sent emissaries to London to seek help in requiring the French to comply. Eventually, many of the pieces were returned, and the diminished Louvre began adding articles from other Paris institutions such as the Luxembourg Palace, from which the Rubens' collection, the Life of St. Bruno, and works by Vernet were acquired.^[5]

19th century after Napoleon

The Venus de Milo was added to the Louvre's collection during the reign of Louis XVIII.

After the fall of Napoleon, during the Restoration (1814-1830), the monarchies of Louis XVIII and Charles X together added 135 pieces at a cost of 720,000 francs. This was considerably less than the amount given for rehabilitation of Versailles and as a result the Louvre suffered relative to the rest of Paris. However, during the reign of Louis XVIII the Venus de Milo and Psyche Revived by Cupid's Kiss by Antonio Canova were added.^[5] After the creation of the French Second Republic in 1848, the new government allocated two million francs for repair work neglected by the monarchy and ordered the completion of the Galerie d'Apollon, the Salon Carré, and the Grande Galerie, large additions facing the Seine river. During this period the museum's works, lacking order, were arranged chronologically.^[5]

On 2 December 1851, Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, who had been elected President of the Republic, staged a coup d'état by dissolving the National Assembly and ushering in what became the Second French Empire. Between 1852 and 1870, the French economy generally grew, and the museum added about 20,000 new pieces to its collections. Additionally, the link between the Tuileries and the museum was completed via the Pavillon de Flore.^[15][5]

Several thousand artworks, including 200 paintings and many bronzes and sculptures arrived after the acquisition of the Campana museum. These additions included the Sarcophagus of a Married Couple, jewellery, and various maiolicas.^[15] Further purchases or gifts of 133 more works and 256 pieces given to the institution were styled the Collection Lacaze. These included works by Rembrandt such as Bathsheba at Her Bath.^[15] This period of rapid growth continued into the early 20th century, when it became evident that the structure was too small for the amount of work displayed.^[5]

Third Republic to present

The Winged Victory of Samothrace arrived at the Louvre from an archaeological excavation in the Aegean Sea in 1863.

Following the demise of the Second Empire after the Franco Prussian War of 1870, the French Third Republic began. During this period, the Louvre acquired new pieces via donations. The institution received large gifts from Baron Devaillier and Madame Boucicaut, and the Société des Amis du Louvre donated the Pieta of Villeneuve lès Avignon. In 1863, the sculpture Winged Victory of Samothrace was uncovered in an archaeological expedition in the Aegean Sea. This particular piece, despite being heavily damaged, is considered one of the Louvre's most valuable pieces and has been on prominent display since 1884.^[15][5]

This period of rapid growth for the museum was disrupted by the First and Second World Wars. During both, many of the structure's most valuable pieces were hidden. As the Nazis advanced on Paris during the Second World War, the Venus de Milo, Mona Lisa, and other works were moved to safety. After the wars, the museum was unable to acquire many significant works, with exceptions of Georges de la Tour's Saint Thomas and the collection of prints and drawings given via the donation of Baron Edmond de Rothschild's (1845–1934) collection in 1935. This donation contained more than 40,000 engravings, nearly 3,000 drawings and 500 illustrated books.^[15]

Modern architectural developments

Axe historique

The Louvre is not aligned upon the axe historique.

Main article: Axe historique

The destroyed Tuileries Palace, once connected to the Louvre, lay at the eastern end of the Axe historique (Historic Axis), an 8-kilometre (5 mi) long straightaway that begins at La Défense and includes the Champs Élysées and Arc de Triomphe. The axis was begun in 1572 when architect André Le Nôtre planted a line of trees from the Louvre courtyard to the Tuileries.^[17] In 1871, when the Paris Commune burned the palace to the ground, it became possible to see that the Louvre was not aligned on the long axis. The museum had appeared to be along the same sight line as the Champs Élysées, but after destruction of the palace, it was clear that it was not.^[18]

Pyramid

Main article: Louvre Pyramid

The central courtyard of the museum, slightly askew of the Champs-Élysées, is occupied by the Louvre Pyramid, which serves as the main entrance to the museum. The pyramid, made of glass, was commissioned by former French president François Mitterrand and designed by I. M. Pei, a Chinese-American architect. The construction work on the pyramid base and underground lobby was carried out by Dumez and inaugurated in 1989.^[19] This was the most famous renovation of the Grand Louvre Project, part of Mitterand's Grands Projets to create monuments to the role of France in art, politics, and the world economy.^[20] The Carre Gallery, where the Mona Lisa was exhibited, was also renovated. The pyramid covers the Louvre entresol and forms part of the new entrance to the museum.^[21]

Courtyard of Museum of Louvre, at night, with the Pyramid prominently displayed at centre

Lens

Main article: Louvre-Lens

View of the outside from inside the Louvre Pyramid

To relieve the crowded Paris Louvre, increase total museum visits, and improve the economy of the industrial north, French officials decided in 2004 to build a satellite museum on the site of an abandoned coal pit in the former mining town of Lens.^[22] Six cities were considered for the project: Amiens, Arras, Boulogne-sur-Mer, Calais, Lens, and Valenciennes. In 2004, French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin chose Lens, Pas-de-Calais, to be the site of the new building, to be called Le Louvre-Lens. Museum officials predicted that the new building, capable of receiving about 600 works of art, would attract as many as 500,000 visitors a year when it opened in 2009.^[22] The architectural joint-venture team of Sanaa of Tokyo and the New York-based Imrey Culbert LP were awarded the project in 2005 after an international competition for the work.^[23]

Louvre Abu Dhabi

Main article: Louvre Abu Dhabi

In March 2007, the Louvre announced that a Louvre museum would be completed by 2012 in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. A 30-year agreement, signed by French Culture Minister Renaud Donnedieu de Vabres and Sheik Sultan bin Tahnoon Al Nahyan, will establish a Louvre museum in downtown Abu Dhabi in exchange for €832,000 (US$1.3 billion). The Louvre Abu Dhabi, designed by the French architect Jean Nouvel and engineers Buro Happold, will occupy 24,000 square metres (260,000 sq ft) covered by a roof in the shape of a flying saucer. France has agreed to rotate between 200 and 300 artworks through the Louvre Abu Dhabi during a 10-year period, to provide management expertise, and to provide four temporary exhibitions a year for 15 years. The art will come from multiple French museums, including the Louvre, the Georges Pompidou Centre, the Musée d'Orsay, Versailles, the Musée Guimet, the Musée Rodin, and the Musée du Quai Branly.^[24]

Departments

The Musée du Louvre's collection contains more than 380,000 objects and displays 35,000 works of art drawn from eight curatorial departments. More than 60,600 square metres (652,000 sq ft) of exhibition space is dedicated to the permanent collection.^[25] According to the 2005 annual report, the collection includes 11,900 paintings, the second largest holding of western pictorial art in the world after the State Hermitage in Russia. Six thousand paintings are on permanent display, and 5,900 are in storage. Besides paintings, the Louvre exhibits include sculptures, objets d'art, and archaeological finds.^[5][15]

Decorative arts

The decorative arts department contains jewelry, ceramics, furniture, and tapestries. The collection began through appropriation of royal property during the 18th century after the fall of the Ancien regime. Acquisitions continued through the 19th century as pieces were moved from Sainte-Chapelle and Saint-Denis. In modern times, the apartments of Napoléon were added to the collection. The department formerly included the Bureau du Roi, completed by Jean Henri Riesener in the 18th century, but it was later returned to the Palace of Versailles.^[26]

Egyptian antiquities

The Seated Scribe, a piece added to the Louvre's collection from the findings of Auguste Mariette

The Louvre contains a large collection of art from the Nile civilizations, dating from around 4000 BCE to the 4th century CE. The collection is not rooted directly in Napoléon's expeditionary trip to Egypt, which occurred between 1798 and 1801. Egyptian artifacts taken from the royal collections were displayed before the department existed. The department opened in 1826 following a decree by King Charles X, impressed by the collection of Jean-François Champollion, who was appointed director. The department grew with acquisitions by Auguste Mariette, founder of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. Mariette, after being dispatched to Egypt, sent back crates of archaeological finds, including the Seated Scribe.^[27]

The collection includes art, papyrus scrolls, mummies, and artifacts. During the Grand Louvre renovation project, the collection was reorganized and split between two floors. The ground floor consists of 20 rooms dedicated to the time period and arranged chronologically. The Denon Wing houses a funerary display, including mummies.^[27]

Greek, Etruscan, and Roman

This department displays pieces coming from throughout the Mediterranean Basin and dating from the Neolithic to the 6th century. As with the Egyptian collection, the Greek, Etruscan, and Roman collections began with appropriated royal art. Initially, the collection focused on marble sculptures, such as the Venus de Milo. However, in the 19th century the Louvre acquired vases from the Durand collection, bronzes such as the Borghese Vase from the Bibliothèque nationale, and work from other mediums.

From 1975 the department underwent a reorganization during which much of the Roman sculpture was placed in the Salle d'Auguste and the Petite Galerie. Roman copies were ordered into galleries paralleling the Seine . Notable pieces in the department include the Winged Victory of Samothrace, the Kore of Samos, the Lady of Auxerre, and the Venus de Milo.^[28]

Islamic art

The Islamic art collection, the youngest department in the museum, contains works spanning "thirteen centuries and three continents".^[29] The collection was originally part of the decorative arts department but became a separate department in 2003. The holdings include the Pyxide d'al-Mughira, an ivory box dating from 968 CE from Andalusia, and a basin named the Baptistry of Saint-Louis that was transferred to the museum from the royal collection in 1793.^[29]

Khorsabad - Human Headed Winged Bulls and Reliefs

Paintings

The paintings department currently comprises more than 6,000 works from 13th century through 1848. The 12 curators of the paintings department oversee the arrangement and display of the collection, which predates the Louvre as a museum. The use of the museum structure as a depository for painted works began with François I, who envisioned a collection that would rival those in Italy. To achieve this, the king acquired works from Italian masters such as Raphael and Michelangelo. Additionally, others such as Leonardo Da Vinci were asked to attend to his court.^[30]

After the French Revolution, these works formed the nucleus of the nascent Louvre. The collection continued to grow throughout the years of the First French Empire during Napoleon's European Wars. When the d'Orsay train station was converted into the Musée d'Orsay in 1986, the painting collection was split, and the pieces completed after the 1848 Revolution were moved to the newly formed museum. French works and art from Northern Europe are in the Richelieu wing and Cour Carrée, while Spanish and Italian paintings are on the first floor of the Denon wing.^[30]

Prints and drawings

This collection is dedicated to the museum's compilation of works upon a paper medium. The first showing of the young collection occurred on 5 August 1797, when the department was opened for public viewing. Originally, the majority of pieces came from the Cabinet du Roi. As with the paintings department, the collection grew from military campaigns during Napoleon's reign. In 1806, the department was enriched with the addition of 1,200 new works from Fillipo Baldinucci's collection. The drawings have been subject to frequent moves throughout their history and reside in the Pavillon de Flore. Although the collection was initially a department in its own right, it was merged with the paintings department for a time. However, prints and drawings are once again autonomous and compromise the seventh department of the Louvre.^[31]

Sculptures

The sculpture curatorial department contains "modern" sculpture.^[32] The Louvre has been a repository of sculpted material since its time as a palace; however, the first display of medieval, Renaissance, and modern works did not occur until 1824. Initially, the collection was relatively small, with about 100 works and, because of government focus on Versaille, it remained so until 1847 when Léon Laborde was given control of the department. By 1855 there were 388 pieces on display. Initially, the collection was organized under the department of antiquities but was given autonomy in 1871, and in 1986 all works from after 1850 were relocated to the new Musée d'Orsay. As part of the Grand Louvre project, the sculpture department was separated into two exhibition spaces. The French collection is on display in the Richelieu wing, while foreign works are located throughout the Denon wing.^[32]

Location and access

A map of the Louvre in the Ier arrondissement or Paris. Metro Lines serving the area are shown, with stations colored red. Note that the RER is not shown. Landmarks are in black.

The museum lies in the heavily-visited centre of Paris on the Right Bank. The neighborhood, known as the Ier arrondissement, is home to the destroyed Palais des Tuileries and the Tuileries Gardens. These gardens, created in 1564 by Catherine de Medici and reorganized in 1664 by André Le Nôtre, house the Galerie nationale du Jeu de Paume, a contemporary art museum that was used to store Jewish cultural property from 1940 to 1944.^[33]

The Pavillon de Flore and Denon Wing, parallel to the Seine River, are at 36 Quai du Louvre. From the Left Bank the museum is across the Pont du Carrousel or the Pont des Arts. The museum is bounded on the north by Napoleon's Rue de Rivoli and Cardinal Richelieu's former residence, the Palais Royal. To the east is the Place du Louvre.^[33]

The Louvre can be reached by the Palais Royal – Musée du Louvre Métro or the Louvre-Rivoli station. The stations are named after the nearby Palais Royal, the Louvre, and the Rue de Rivoli.

Notable works

See also List of museums in Paris Centre de recherche et de restauration des musées de France American Friends of the Louvre References ^ Sandler, Linda (February 25, 2008). Louvre's 8.3 Million Visitors Make It No. 1 Museum Worldwide. Retrieved on 2008-04-17. ^ Top 5 Most Visited Museums. Time magazine for kids (October 1, 2004). Retrieved on 2008-01-10. ^ Exhibition attendance figures 2007 (pdf). The Art Newspaper (March 2008). Retrieved on 2008-04-17. ^ Thirty-Five Thousand Works of Art. Musée du Louvre. Retrieved on 2008-04-30. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Potter, Mary Knight (1904). The Art of the Louvre. Boston: L.C. Page and Company, 1–30, Chapter 1.  ^ a b c Francis Miltoun (1910). Royal Palaces and Parks of France. L.C. Page & Co, pp. 114,  115, 76.  ^ Delia Gray-Durant (2004). Art/Shop/Eat Paris. London: A&C Black, pp.p. 7. ISBN 0-393-32595-4.  ^ a b c d e f g Edwards, Henry Sutherland (1893). Old and New Paris: Its History, Its People, and Its Places. Paris: Cassell and Co., 194. Retrieved on 2008-04-30.  ^ a b Alexandre Gady; Pitt, Leonard (2006). Walks Through Lost Paris: A Journey Into the Heart of Historic Paris. Shoemaker & Hoard, pp. 112, 113. ISBN 1-59376-103-1.  ^ a b c Structurae [fr: Palais du Louvre (1993)]. Structurae Database. Retrieved on 2008-01-14. ^ The project is analyzed in the context of Parisian urbanism. Thomson, David (1984). Renaissance Paris: Architecture and Growth, 1475-1600. Berkeley: University of California, 60–70..  ^ Sutcliffe, Anthony (1993). Paris: An Architectural History. Yale University Press, p. 31. ISBN 0300068867.  ^ Baedeker, Karl (1891). Paris and Environs: With Routes from London to Paris; Handbook for Travellers. K. Baedeker, pp. 87–89.  ^ a b c d e f g McClellan, Andrew (1999). Inventing the Louvre: Art, Politics, and the Origins of the Modern Museum.... Berkeley: University of California Press, pp. 14–20, 95–110. ISBN 0520221761.  ^ a b c d e f g h Nave, Alain (1998). Treasures of the Louvre. Barnes & Noble Publishing. ISBN 0760710678.  ^ Monaghan, Sean M.; Rodgers, Michael (2000). French Sculpture 1800-1825, Canova. 19th Century Paris Project. School of Art and Design, San Jose State University. Retrieved on 2008-04-24. ^ Bowkett, Stephen; Porter, Tom (2004). Archispeak: an illustrated guide to architectural terms. London: Spon Press. ISBN 0-415-30011-8.  ^ Rogers, Elizabeth A. (2001). Landscape design: a cultural and architectural history. New York: Harry N. Abrams, p. 159. ISBN 0-8109-4253-4.  ^ The Grand Louvre Museum. Vinci. Retrieved on 2008-04-26. ^ Le Grand Louvre, Paris. Galinsky (1998–2006). Retrieved on 2008-04-26. ^ Williams, Nicola; Berry, Oliver. Lonely Planet France. Lonely Planet Publications, pp. 126–28. ISBN 1-74104-233-X.  ^ a b Gentleman, Amelia. "Lens puts new angle on the Louvre", Guardian, December 1, 2004. Retrieved on 2008-02-27.  ^ Imrey Culbert and Sanaa Win Louvre Lens Competition. Dexigner (September 30, 2005). Retrieved on 2008-04-27. ^ The Louvre’s Art: Priceless. The Louvre’s Name: Expensive.. The New York Times (March 6, 2007). Retrieved on 2008-04-24. ^ Œuvres. Musée du Louvre. Retrieved on 2008-04-27. ^ Decorative Arts. Musée du Louvre. Retrieved on 2008-04-30. ^ a b Egyptian Antiquities. Musée du Louvre. Retrieved on 2008-04-30. ^ Greek, Etruscan, and Roman Antiquities. Musée du Louvre. Retrieved on 2008-04-30. ^ a b Islamic Art. Musée du Louvre. Retrieved on 2008-04-30. ^ a b Paintings. Musée du Louvre. Retrieved on 2008-04-23. ^ Prints and Drawings. Musée du Louvre. Retrieved on 2008-04-23. ^ a b Sculptures. Musée du Louvre. Retrieved on 2008-04-23. ^ a b Mroue, Haas H.. Frommer's Paris from $90 a day. Hoboken, N.J. : Wiley, c 2004., p. 176. ISBN 0-7645-5806-4.  External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Louvre Official Louvre website (English) (Requires Flash) Louvre Museum Extensive Photo Gallery from The Louvre — Photos of almost all the sculpture, many of the paintings and Objects d'Art General views of Le Louvre Fullscreen Virtual Tour by Virtualsweden Excerpt of Michael T. Cannell's book on I.M. Pei — discusses controversy over Pei's pyramid. Antiquities of the Louvre Official École du Louvre website (Requires Flash) Photos of Louvre museum panoramic views of the entrance pyramid Louvre museum: Map, contact, price, opening hours, user reviews, etc. v • d • e Popular visitor attractions in Paris Arc de Triomphe • Basilique du Sacré-Cœur, Paris • Cathedral of Notre Dame • Centre Georges Pompidou • Champs-Élysées • Conciergerie • Eiffel Tower • Grand Palais • Jardin du Luxembourg • Les Invalides • Louvre • Musée d'Orsay • Opéra Garnier • Père Lachaise Cemetery v • d • e Museums with major collections of Paintings (mid-13th century to 20C) State Hermitage, St. Petersburg, Russia 16,783 paintings [1] Musée du Louvre, Paris, France 11,900 paintings [1] Royal Collection, London, UK 7,000 paintings [2] Hungarian National Gallery, Budapest, Hungary 6,000 paintings [3] National Museum of Serbia , Belgrade , Serbia 5,600 paintings and around 8,400 drawings and prints [4] Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, Netherlands 5,500 paintings [5] Musee d'Orsay, Paris, France 5,033 paintings [6] Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence, Italy 4,800 paintings [7] Tate Collection, London, UK 4,442 paintings [8] Neue Pinakothek, Munich, Germany 4,000 paintings [9] Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten Antwerpen, Antwerp, Belgium 3,200 paintings [10] Museo del Prado, Madrid, Spain 3,000 paintings [11] Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest, Hungary 3,000 paintings [12] Das Städel Museum, Frankfurt, Germany 2,700 paintings [13] National Gallery, London, UK 2,300 paintings [14] Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA 2,200 paintings [15] Victoria & Albert Museum, London, UK 2,000 paintings [16] Yale Center for British Art, Connecticut, USA 1,900 paintings [17] Accademia Carrara di Bergamo, Bergamo, Italy 1,800 paintings [18] Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, UK 1697 paintings (inc. 200 paintings from Christ Church Picture Gallery) [19] [20] Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, USA 1,600 paintings [21] Gräflich Lambergsche Gemählde-Gallerie, Akademie der bildenden Künste Wien, Vienna, Austria 1,600 paintings [22] Liechtenstein Museum, Vienna, Austria 1,500 paintings [23] Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, Austria 1,400 paintings [24] National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.,