Louvre Museum: Must-see masterpieces

More than 480,000 registered works in the Musée du Louvre's collections, over 36,000 of which are on display. A surface area of 360,000 m², over 400 exhibition rooms... The Musée du Louvre is an exceptional monument, a temple of art in Paris. But it's also a gigantic place, far too big for a single day's visit!

It's impossible to admire all these treasures in a single stroll. So if you're just passing through Paris, if you've only got a few hours to spare, or if you're just looking for a place to start, this article is for you.

Among the thousands of works preserved and exhibited in the Louvre are priceless pieces , ancient relics and world-famous masterpieces. Paintings, sculptures, objets d'art, archaeological treasures... These nuggets are a must-see at least once in your life, especially if you're lucky enough to be able to visit the museum that houses them!

Here is a selection of works not to be missed on your next trip to the museum:

Let's start with the star of this museum, one of the world's most famous paintings, the one that draws crowds: the Mona Lisa (Department of Italian Paintings - Denon wing, 1st floor, room 711). Painted by Leonardo da Vinci between 1503 and 1506, this mysterious portrait has fascinated visitors and art lovers alike for centuries!

But Mona Lisa isn't the Louvre's only grande dame. The Venus de Milo (Département des Antiquités grecques, étrusques et romaines - Aile Sully Rez-de-chaussée, salle 346) and the Victoire de Samothrace (Département des Antiquités grecques, étrusques et romaines - Aile Denon Rez-de-chaussée, salle 703), two statues from Mediterranean civilizations admired the world over, are also among the museum's must-sees.

The French, too, can produce powerful, timeless masterpieces, as demonstrated by Théodore Géricault's Le Radeau de la Méduse(Département de la Peinture française XIXe - Aile Denon 1er étage, salle 700) and Eugène Delacroix's La Liberté guidant le peuple(same room).

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Do you like shiny things? Then head for the Department of Works of Art from the Middle Ages, the Renaissance and Modern Times. In the Sully wing (level 1, room 601), you can discover Louis XIV's Chest of Jewels, made entirely of gold. In the Denon wing (level 1, room 705), admire the diamond known as"le Régent", an exceptional stone that once belonged to various crowned heads of France.

Let's go back in time, in search of the museum's oldest artifacts. The Louvre has a number of mummies and sarcophagi on display (Department of Egyptian Antiquities, Sully wing, level 0), as well as the famous Crouching Scribe, dating from 2620 BC, and the monumental statue of Ramses II.

Then it's on to the paintings department, on the second level of the Richelieu wing, to admire a large collection of paintings. Among them is the portrait entitled"Gabrielle d'Estrées and one of her sisters", a work often used in films, TV series and other media.

Of course, this list is not exhaustive, and many masterpieces are missing from this article. But this first selection should give you a good idea of what the museum has to offer!

Do you love Italian painting? Discover the works of Botticelli in Paris.

Botticelli: where to see his works in Paris museums?
To coincide with the Botticelli, Artist & Designer exhibition at the Musée Jacquemart-André until January 24, 2022, we took a closer look at the artist's works, usually on display in Paris museums. An overview of the works of this immeasurable artist of the Italian Renaissance, to be discovered without having to go to the Uffizi Gallery in Florence. [Read more]