The Louvre is the most famous art museum in the world, and there are some fascinating surprises about it that will make you want to visit immediately.
The Louvre Museum has existed for over 8 centuries. The history of the Louvre Palace began in 1190 when King Philip II built a fortress along the Seine River. The structure was surrounded by a moat, with four corners guarded by watchtowers, primarily tasked with monitoring the downstream area, a traditional attack route for the Vikings.
The Louvre Museum was once a royal palace. In the 14th century, King Charles V defeated the English and became the first king to reside at the Louvre. He commissioned architect Raymond du Temple to renovate the Louvre into a suitable residence for a king. Francois I destroyed the building in 1546 and subsequently rebuilt the Louvre into a Renaissance paradise that he called home.
The Louvre Museum was once a royal palace.
The Louvre currently houses over 380,000 works of art across an area of 80,000 square meters. The museum first opened to the public in 1793.
Jacques Jaujard, responsible for evacuating and protecting France’s art collections during World War II, moved 4,000 artworks from the Louvre and hid them in a castle in the Loire Valley.
Paris invited renowned architect Ieoh Ming Pei to create the iconic Louvre Pyramid located at the entrance to the famous Louvre Museum. At that time, many Parisians were dissatisfied with a foreign architect being assigned such an important task. However, I.M. Pei’s work has become a symbol recognized worldwide. The pyramid has become as iconic to Paris as the Eiffel Tower.
The Louvre is beautifully historic and always bustling with visitors.
The Louvre is the most visited museum in the world. According to BBC, 10.2 million visitors visited the Louvre in 2018. The current ticket price for visiting the museum is 15 Euros per person.
On August 21, 1911, the Mona Lisa was stolen by an employee of the Louvre Museum. This theft made Leonardo da Vinci’s painting of Mona Lisa famous worldwide. After the famous painting was returned, there were many unsuccessful attempts to damage it. The painting is now behind bulletproof glass and is one of the museum’s most prominent works.
Visitors admire the Mona Lisa.
25% of Leonardo Da Vinci’s paintings are housed in the Louvre. Unlike Caravaggio or Picasso, Leonardo Da Vinci left the world with only 24 known independent works of art. Six of those 24 paintings are located at the Louvre. When you visit the Louvre, you are experiencing 25% of the collection of this master painter.
French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte made significant contributions to the Louvre Museum. His conquests brought many valuable trophies to the museum. Under the direction of Baron Vivant Denon, the Louvre’s collection was greatly expanded.
