Page 106 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - France

The unmistakable glass
pyramid of the Louvre in
the Cour Napoléon Did You Know?
Napoleon temporarily
1 "'\= renamed the museum
MUSÉE DU after himself and hung
the Mona Lisa in
his bedroom
LOUVRE

 F3 ⌂ Pl du Louvre q Palais-Royal Musée du Louvre @ 21, 24, 27,
39, 48, 68, 69, 72, 81, 95 W Châtelet-Les-Halles x Louvre # 9am–6pm
Wed–Mon (to 9:45pm Wed & Fri) ¢ 1 Jan, 1 May & 25 Dec ∑ louvre.fr
First opened to the public in 1793 after the Revolution, the Louvre
contains one of the most important art collections in the world.
Its stunning architecture makes it an icon of Paris.

Constructed as a fortress in 1190 by King Philippe-Auguste to GALLERY GUIDE
protect Paris against Viking raids, the Louvre lost its imposing Eight departments
keep during the reign of François I (1514–47), who replaced it are spread over four
with a Renais sance-style building. Thereafter, four centuries of floors: Near Eastern
French kings and emperors improved and en larged it. A glass antiquities; Egyptian
pyramid designed by I M Pei was added to the main courtyard antiquities; Greek,
in 1989, from which all of the galleries can be reached. Etruscan and Roman
The Louvre’s treasures can be traced back to the 16th- antiquities; Islamic art;
century collection of François I, who purchased many Italian sculptures; decorative
paintings, including the Mona Lisa (La Gioconda). At the time arts; paintings; and
of Louis XIV’s reign (1643–1715) there were a mere 200 works, prints and drawings.
but donations have augmented the collection ever since.
106

106-107_EW_France.indd 106 30/01/2019 15:37

EW Must-see template v2.1 – 18th October 2018
Fonts: Aptifer Sans LT Pro, Posterama Text, Soho Gothic
Pro, Soho Pro, ITC Caslon 224