 | Paris Louvre Reviews | 21 - 30 of 863 |  |
If one takes one's time to see everything in the Louvre, one would need to spend a whole week there; however, spending an entire week in a museum is not productive in any sense of the word. Cramping anything into the mind or the body is never a beneficial way to do anything except when one is in college, finals are two days away and one has not even bought all the books yet.
Assuming we have passed the carefree and careless college years behind, I suggest that you spread your visits to the greatest museum in the world into as many trips as you possible can.
With each trip to Paris, we see only one section of the Louvre but since we usually repeat the same wing (the Egyptian one -- Charles is crazy about this stuff), so far, we have not seen the whole interior of the museum yet, and the gardens and tuileries will have to wait until our next lifetime.
The best time is at 9AM on a weekday when the museum opens. You should head straight to La Gioconda (Mona Lisa) before the crowd forms a human barricade in front of the painting. After that, go to one pre-selected wing and stay until your eyes water and your mind becomes mush.
Don't try to cover a lot even within one section; you are not in a marathon here. Since the best thing comes in small dosage, it's better to experience slowly 1% of the great museum than to run like a madman through 10% of the great works. Leave a Comment
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I had heard about the entrance Porte des Lions located at the end of the Denon wing near the Seine with the Pont Royal and the Quai des Tuileries but I had not tested this entrance. On my last visit to the Louvre (July 2008) I went out at 11 h and back in by this entrance at 11.30 h and there was no line and only few visitors entering here.
You can buy your entrance ticket here without queuing and reach La Joconde by a shortcut.
This entrance of the Porte des Lions opens on the department of African arts. There is no connection by the Ground floor to the other part of the Denon wing.
By taking the stair case or elevator the visitors reach the 1st floor with the rooms on Spanish paintings and then the Grande Galerie (Italian paintings) with on the left room 6 and the "Joconde".
It is faster than entering wing Denon by the Pyramide where the stairs passing by the Samothrace Victory statue are usually crowded with visitors making the progress to La Joconde slow.
Just have a look at my photos showing no crowd at 9.20 h and the crowd at 11 h. Address: Palais du Louvre - Entrée de la Porte des LionsDirections: Métro: Palais Royal-Musée du Louvre
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Three of the major museums in Paris have divided up the History of Art among themselves. The Louvre, being the largest, is responsible for Art from the earliest times up to 1847. The Musée d'Orsay takes over for the remarkable sixty-six years from 1848 to 1914, and the Museum of Modern Art at the Centre Pompidou shows works from 1914 to the present -- though this is not a hard and fast rule, and there is inevitably some overlapping.
I can think of one other city that has a similar division of epochs among its major museums, namely Munich, which has the Alte Pinakothek for European paintings from the 14th to 18th centuries, the Neue Pinakothek for the 19th century and the Pinakothek der Moderne for 20th and 21st century art.
Most people enter the Louvre through the Pyramid the central courtyard, but it goes faster if you buy a Museum Pass or simply an advance admission ticket, both of which are available at the fnac (Forum des Halles) or online at http://www.fnacspectacles.com.
These allow you to enter more quickly through the priority entrance in Passage Richelieu.
Second photo: There are 35,000 works of art on display in the Louvre, so it's sort of like the internet -- you can't possibly see them all, so you have to navigate to see what you want, or take potluck. And don't let yourself be overwhelmed by the sheer masses of fantastic artworks! This is room 39 on the second floor of the Richelieu wing, showing Dutch masterpieces from the second half of the 17th century.
Third photo: Le Pont du Rialto (Rialto Bridge in Venice) by Antonio Canal, aka CANALETTO (1697- 1768), in hall C on the second floor of the Sully wing.
Fourth photo: La nuit ; un port de mer au clair de lune (The night ; a seaport by moonlight), painted in 1771 by Joseph Vernet (1714-1789). On display in room 52 on the second floor of the Sully wing.
Fifth photo: The Galerie d'Apollon (Gallery of Apollo) has recently been restored after three years of work funded by a corporate sponsor. It is in hall 66 on the first floor of the Denon wing. Leave a Comment
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L'aile Richelieu, au premier étage à la section Renaissance, salle 19, contient une série de 12 tapisseries qui sont parmi les plus belles au monde, il s'agit des "Chasses de Maximilien" qui représentent des chasses à la cour de l'empereur Charles Quint au long des 12 mois de l'année. Ces scènes de chasse dans lesquelles ont peut reconnaître Maximilien d'Autriche et Marie de Hongrie ont lieu dans la forêt de Soignes aux environs de Bruxelles. L'hôtel de ville de Bruxelles ainsi que l'abbaye du Rouge Cloître se reconnaissent très bien sur certaines tapisseries.
Le peintre cartonnier en est Bernard Van Orley (Bruxelles) assisté par Jean Tons. Selon certains le lissier serait le Bruxellois Guillaume Dermoyen selon d'autres le monogramme sur ces tapisseries serait celui de Jan Ghieteels. Quoiqu'il en soit de l'atelier de tissage, ces tapisseries tissées vers 1531-1533 illustrent à merveille l'inspiration italienne combinée avec la maîtrise technique des lissiers Bruxellois. (Voir à ce sujet ma revue du Musée des Arts et Histoire au Cinquantenaire de Bruxelles). Elles sont tissées à haute lisse et à or.
Commandées par les Habsbourg, ces tapisseries ont appartenu aux Ducs de Guise au XVIe siècle, à Mazarin et ensuite à Louis XIV.
Ces douze merveilles sont bien mises en valeur dans la grande salle 19 de la section "Renaissance" mais il est navrant de constater que beaucoup de touristes passant devant sans s'arrêter. Quelqu'un a écrit un livre sur la "culture qui fout le camp"! Address: Aile Richelieu, 1er étage, salle 19Directions: Métro: Palais Royal-Musée du Louvre
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The Louvre Museum, like the Eiffel Tower, is another one of those Paris must-see attractions, and no matter how often people have told you it is big and no matter how big you're picturing it, it's even bigger than that!
The history of the building itself goes back to 1190, when King Philippe Auguste ordered that a fortress be built to protect Paris from Viking attacks. About three centuries later, King Francois 1er transfomed the fortress into a magnificient Renaissance castle and since then, countless additions have been made over the years by the kings of France. It was finally turned into a museum in 1793 and thanks to donations from all over the world, it has since become one of the biggest art museums in the world.
The visit of the Louvre can actually start on the outside, where you can walk through the "Jardin du Carrousel" and admire over 20 scuptures by Aristide Maillol, as well as the "Arc de triomphe du Carrousel", which was built to commemorate Napoleon III's victories of 1805.
The Louvre's latest addition was not ordered by a king but by Francois Mitterand, then President of France. The museum was expanded under the "Grand Louvre" project, which lasted from 1981 to 1999. Of course, one of the most noticeable additions is I.M. Pei's glass pyramid, or La Pyramide du Louvre, which sits at the center of the Cour Napoleon. The addition of the modern-looking pyramid definitely stirred up some controversy, but somehow I thought it looked really good! Leave a Comment Address: Quai du LouvrePhone: 01 40 20 51 51Directions: By the Seine, across from the Pont du Carrousel (metro Musee du Louvre).Website: http://www.louvre.fr
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The Louvre is the world's largest museum and one of the world's greatest art collections in the world. The palace stretches for about half mile between the Seine and rue de Rivoli. It was originally a fortress built by Philippe-Auguste in the 13th century. 300 years later Francois I replaced it with a Renaissance style building. Many French kings continued to add to the construction and improve it. Some of the kings used it as their residence before the court moved to Versaille. Louvre was first opened to the public in 1793 and has been used as a museum ever since. The latest addition to the building is the glass pyramid (also a museum entrance) that sits in the courtyard which was designed by I. M. Pei. The pyramid was unveiled in 1989.
The Louvre's collection is overwhelming in size and it includes paitings, drawings, sculptures, antiquities, furniture, coins etc It is impossible to see everything in one day, in fact I believe it is impossible to see everything even if you spend a few years here. Most people run to see the two ladies, Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa and the statue of Venus de Milo. They are always surrounded by a crowd of people. But try to see more than that; walls are practically lined with masterpieces.
There are many entrances to the museum, not only the one through Pyramid which is always the most crowded. The museums pass card works here and helps in skipping the lines. After 3PM and on Sundays the ticket is half price. Leave a Comment Address: Palais du Louvre
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The Louvre has a huge amount of art and historical items from all over the globe. The place is closed Tuesdays & open 9-6 all other days with Wednesday open until 9:45 p.m.
It's divided into seven departments and covers ancient times to the middle of the 19th century. You can spend three days here and still not see everything it's that big!! When you have finished your visit & stand outside you can get a good perspective on the enormity of the place.
Denon (south) Wing on first floor has many of the key European paintings. The most famous objects I suppose are the Mona Lisa, Winged Victory of Samothrace and Venus de Milo. Richelieu (north) Wing opened in 1993 and has large, covered sculpture courtyard in its middle plus local european artists up on level two. The Reubens room alone is worth visiting this part of the Louvre. The Sully Wing (east) has mostly Egyptian and other antiquities.
As I said, too much to see in one day so if you are in Paris for three days or so, buy a museum & monument pass (was 36 euros for 3 day Paris Visite pass in 2005) and visit the place 2 or 3 times. This way it's easier on the legs and you won't get museum overload too fast plus you won't have to queue. This last fact is a bigger bonus than you may think sitting at home but once you get there & see how many people are queing up you'll thank yourself.
I would also sugest that you approach the Louvre via the metro - especially if it's wet or hot - as it's a much easier way to get into the place. Leave a Comment Directions: Bottom of the Champs, though the gardens & you can't miss it.
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The Louvre, which is famous for great works of art, is much more than just a museum. My suggestion is to enter the museum from its Metro exit. Follow the signs into the reception area and to your left and right as you enter will be queues for ticket machines. Just insert your money and avoid the ticket sellers--the lines go faster for the machines.
There are two kinds of tickets for the Louvre: permanent exhibitions and temporary/permanent exhibitions. If you just want to see the token pieces of art, stick to the permanent exhibitions ticket. It gets you into the three main galleries: Sully, Richeleu, and Denon. Each gallery has its own entrance, but once you get into one with your ticket, you can get to the other two without coming back to the reception area. You may notice that most people begin their visit at the Denon gallery (the Mona Lisa is here). I suggest going to the Sully gallery, which introduces you to the museum with a history of the Louvre and a medieval fortress. The main attractions of the Louvre are in all three galleries, but they are most notably are the Mona Lisa (Denon, on its own wall in a plastic casing, long lines to get into the room) and Venus de Milo (Sully, out in the open among the Greek statues).
The free map of the museum also points out other major pieces in the collection. Other must-sees are the Crown Jewels and Napoleon's Apartments. The Great Drawing Room is remnicent of the amazing rooms within Germany's Neuschwanstein Castle. Plan on spending hours and hours here. There is a lot to see, but it can get a bit repetative after a while. You can take a quick break in any of the cafes. Entrance fees are reduced on Sundays (5 Euro per person). Leave a Comment
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The Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel is elaborately decorated in rose marble on the columns and the front paneling. It is composed of three arches: a large one and two smaller ones. The arc is 63 feet high, 75 feet wide and 24 feet deep. The two small arches are 14 feet, 16 inches high and 9 feet wide. The large arch is 21 feet high and 9 feet wide. Around its exterior are eight Corinthian columns of granite, topped by eight soldiers of the Empire. Between the soldiers, bas-reliefs depict: the Arms of the Kingdom of Italy with figures representing History and the Arts; the Arms of the French Empire with Victory, Fame, History and Abundance; and the Wisdom and Strength holding the arms of the Kingdom of Italy, accompanied by Prudence and Victory.
Napoleon's achievements are commemorated by rose marble bas-reliefs, depicting the Peace of Pressburg,; Napoleon entering Munich; Napoleon entering Vienna,; the Battle of Austerlitz; the Tilsit Conference; and the surrender of Ulm.
The Arc is located at the easternmost end of the so-called "Great Axis" of Paris, a nine-kilometre long linear route which dominates central and western Paris. Looking westwards, the arch is perfectly aligned with the obelisk in the Place de la Concorde, the Champs-Elysees, the Arc de Triomphe and the Grande Arch de la Defense. The axis thus begins and ends with an arch Leave a Comment Address: Place du Carrousel,
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We tend to vacation in the off season for most travelers and had no problem whatsoever just walking to the Louver pyramid and quickly getting a ticket and entrance to the museum. For the busy season you can buy your ticket in advance and enter the Louvre Museum without waiting. Info on the purchase of the tickets can be found at: http://www.louvre.fr/louvrea.htm. You can also order a Museum Pass ("Carte Musées-Monuments") that provides free access, without waiting, to the permanent collections of 60 museums and monuments, one of which is the Louvre Museum from the same site.
In the early part of the 12th century, a French king commissioned the first building of what eventually became the Louvre. After standing for over 500 years as a fortress, in the 16th and 17th century, the fortress was mostly destroyed to be replaced by a comfortable and elegant palace which would serve as the residence for the kings.
Until the Revolution in 1789, this collection was strictly for the private pleasure of the Court. Finally, the idea of a museum (originating with Louis XVI) was realized on 10 August 1793, when the Musée de la République opened to the public.
Napoléon greatly increased the collections by exacting tribute from the countries he conquered, but most of these were returned in 1815 after his defeat at Waterloo
In 1848 the museum became the property of the State. With an annual budget devoted to acquiring new art, the collections continued to grow. Private donations also augmented the Museum's holdings. The most recent addition to the palace is the pyramids, built in the late 1980s.
Today, the catalogue lists nearly 300,000 works, only a fraction of which are on display at any one time. Le Grand Louvre - begun in 1981 is transforming the museum once again enlarging it substantially. The Richelieu Wing - which had ``temporarily'' housed part of the Ministry of Finance since the 18th century - was opened in 1993. Leave a Comment Address: Musée du LouvrePhone: Tel.: +33 1 40 20 53 17Directions: Open every day except Tuesdays, from 9am to 6.45pm (9.45pm on Wednesdays and Fridays).Website: http://www.louvre.fr/
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