The museum is housed in the Louvre Palace, originally built as a fortress in the late 12th to 13th century under Philip II. Remnants of the fortress are visible in the basement of the museum.

History

The museum opened on 10 August 1793 with an exhibition of 537 paintings, the majority of the works being royal and confiscated church property. Because of structural problems with the building, the museum was closed in 1796 until 1801. The collection was increased under Napoleon and the museum was renamed Musée Napoléon, but after Napoleon's abdication many works seized by his armies were returned to their original owners.

The collection was further increased during the reigns of Louis XVIII and Charles X, and during the Second French Empire the museum gained 20,000 pieces. Holdings have grown steadily through donations and bequests since the Third Republic. The collection is divided among eight curatorial departments: Egyptian Antiquities; Near Eastern Antiquities; Greek, Etruscan and Roman Antiquities; Islamic Art; Sculpture; Decorative Arts; Paintings; Prints and Drawings.

The building

The Louvre Palace houses the largest museum in the world. The twelfth century fortress was extended and refurbished several times throughout the centuries. Before it opened as a museum, King Charles V and Philippe II chose this palace as their residence, decorating it with their ever growing art collections.

When the Royal Family moved to Versailles, the impressive building that covers a total area of 160,000 square meters was transformed into one of the most important museums in the world.

A glass pyramid, which is currently the museum's principle entrance, was built in the palace's main courtyard in 1989, piercing the monotony of the Louvre's exterior.

The exhibitions

The Louvre's permanent collection features nearly 300,000 works of art that date before 1948, and of which only 35,000 are visible to the public.

The enormous collection is organized by themes in various departments: an Oriental Antiquities department, Egyptian Antiquities department, Greek Antiquities department and Roman and Etruscan departments. The museum also includes a part on the history of the actual palace, including the Louvre during the Middle Ages, Islamic art, paintings, sculptures and graphic art.

These are some of the most impressive paintings on display:

• The Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci
• Liberty Leading the People by Eugène Delacroix
• The Wedding at Cana by Paolo Veronese

The most famous sculptures are:

• Venus de Milo, an ancient Greek statue.
• Seated Scribe, an ancient Egyptian sculpture.
• Winged Victory of Samothrace, a Hellenistic sculpture

One of the most visited museums worldwide

Due to the sheer size of the museum, visitors will need a whole morning to get a general idea of the Louvre and see the most important paintings, sculptures and other types of art. The Louvre is so vast that one could easily spend several days exploring its exhibitions.

Although the Louvre Museum is extremely prestigious worldwide, for those who are not passionate about art the visit can become a bit tedious due to the museum's dimensions, the heat and the crowds of people.

                                                                    The Catacombs of Paris