We spend lots of time in the Louvre, and frankly, we love it. Encompassing millennia of art from the four corners of the globe, it’s hard to find a museum that competes with its immensity, comprehensiveness, and beauty.
But it is crowded (as one recent strike attested to), and that’s perhaps true nowhere more than in the tiny room that holds the even-tinier Mona Lisa.
We’re of the in-and-out mentality when it comes to this room; once you’ve seen her, it’s time to move on to other things. Luckily, many of our other faves don’t attract quite the same attention, which means that when you visit the Louvre with Paris Uncovered, most of the time, you’ll avoid the crowds. Here are just a few of our faves.
1. The Medieval Louvre
When, in the 1980s, the museum underwent expansion (including the building of the now-iconic pyramid), the space under the Louvre was excavated, and builders found that much of the original medieval Louvre, built concurrently with Notre Dame across the river, still remained. Today, you can actually walk in the former medieval moat (now dry, of course!)
2. Liberty Leading the People
One of the newest pieces in the museum dates to 1830: Eugène Delacroix’s “Liberty Leading the People” – a depiction of the June Rebellion of 1830 (painted in the same year!) that inspired, among other things, Victor Hugo’s character of Gavroche in Les Misérables.
3. Venus de Milo (and the Ancient Greek Gallery)
While Venus de Milo can sometimes attract crowds just as big as those trying to see Mona Lisa, visitors have an advantage here for two reasons: firstly, Venus is quite a bit taller than Mona (and you can walk all the way around her), but secondly, she’s located within a larger gallery of ancient Greek sculpture that you can peruse while waiting for the crowds to dissipate.
4. Victory of Samothrace
This gorgeous Greek statue of Nike, goddess of victory, has been perfectly placed in the center of a huge staircase, giving you tons of vantage points from which to examine her and take tons of photos unhindered by other visitors.
5. Sculpture Gardens
It’s hard to imagine ever aligning the terms “Louvre” and “tranquil,” but the museum actually does take on an air of tranquility as you wander the immense sculpture gardens. Sometimes, we take a seat here just to soak up the beautiful light and art that surrounds us!