The Louvre Museum

Found Louvre Museum in Paris, France. He is one of the largest museums and world famous and also ranks second in number of visitors.

On 8 November 1793, after more than two centuries as the Royal Palace, the Louvre opened as a public museum in Paris by the French Revolutionary government. Today, the collection of the Louvre is one of the richest in the world, with artwork representing 11,000 years of human civilization and culture.
The Louvre Palace was begun by King Francis I in 1546 through a fortress in the 12th century built by King Philip II. Francis was a great collector of art, and Louvre would serve as his royal residence. Work, which was overseen by architect Pierre Lesco, continued after the death of Francis and during the reign of King Henry II and Charles IX.
Almost all followers of the French monarchy expanded Louvre and more work was added by Louis XIII and Louis XIV in the 17th century. Both these kings also added a collection of royal crowns and Louis XIV assured collection of art by Charles I of England after his execution in the English Civil War.
In 1682, Louis XIV transferred his royal palace at Versailles, and the Louvre was not the main royal residence. In the spirit of the French Enlightenment, many French were looking for public exposure royal collection. Denis Diderot, French writer and philosopher, was among the first to propose a national art museum to the public.
Although King Louis XV temporarily exposed parts of selected paintings in the Luxembourg Palace, in 1750, was the French Revolution, of 1789, which brought real progress in creating a permanent museum. On 8 November 1793, the revolutionary government opened the Musée Central des Arts in the Great Gallery of the Louvre.
The Louvre collection was enriched quickly. French armies were works of art and archaeological sites from the occupied territories and, during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars. After the defeat of Napoleon, in 1815, many of these looted artwork returned.
But collection of Egyptian antiquities of the Louvre and other departments owe the Napoleonic invasions. Two new wings were added to the building in the 19th century and the Louvre building was completed in 1857, during the reign of Napoleon III.
In the '80s and '90s, the Grand Louvre, officially known as the museum underwent a major remodeling. Modern equipment was added to the museum and opened thousands of square meters of new exhibition space.


Chinese-American architect IM Pei built a steel and glass pyramid in the center of the courtyard of Napoleon. In 1993, the 200th anniversary of the museum, a reconstructed wing ago, occupied by the French Ministry of Finance, was opened to the public. It was the first time that the entire Louvre museum was dedicated for the purpose.