1000 Museums

The Musée du Louvre, or officially Grand Louvre, houses one of the most stunning collections of artworks in the world. The Louvre is known first and foremost as a museum, yet for almost seven hundred years the buildings constituted one of the principal residences of the kings and emperors of France. This central landmark of Paris is located on the Right Bank of the Seine in the 1st arrondissement. The museum contains more than 380,000 objects and displays 35,000 works of art in eight curatorial departments with more than 60,600 square meters (652,000 sq ft) dedicated to the permanent collection.

The Musée du Louvre opened on 10 August 1793 with an exhibition of 537 paintings. 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. Each department is shaped by the activities of its curators, collectors, and donors.

The Louvre exhibits sculptures, objets d\’art, paintings, drawings, and archaeological finds. It is the world\’s most visited museum, reaching over 10 million annual visitors.