The Louvre

 From the fortress of Philippe Auguste (1190) to the completion of the "Grand Dessein" (1870), the Louvre palace has extended progressively along the right bank of the Seine. A true barrier separating the northern and southern parts of the city, the building constitutes the point of departure of the great East-West view, which crosses the Arc du Carrousel, the obelisk in the Place de la Concorde, the Arc de Triomphe on the Champs-Elysˇes, and extends right out to the new arche de la Dˇfense.The international renown of the Louvre museum sometimes makes us forget that it was originally designed as a palace. Since the Middle Ages, its development has been quite exceptional, marked by both the major events of French history and the succession of architects and decorators who have left their mark on it.
 The Louvre was not in any way originally intended to become a museum. The "salle des antiques" which Henri VI set up onthe ground floor of the Grande Galerie was not accessible to the general public, nor was the king's cabinet of drawings,created in 1671, or the king's cabinet of paintings, to which access was reserved for a privileged few.
 From the date when, under Louis XIV, most of its occupants left the Louvre, its vocation as a "palace of the arts" appeared a quite natural progression in the eyes of the resident artists and the academies. The idea of a Palace of the Muses or "Musˇum", where one could view the royal collections, was born in 1747. The museum concept, which was quite new at the time, ran along the same lines as the Encyclopedia and the philosophy of the Enlightenment. From 1779, purchases and museographical projects demonstrate the imminence of its realisation.
 The collections of the Louvre Museum represent works of art dating from the birth of the great civilisations of the Mˇditerranean area until the western civilisation of the Early Middle Ages to the middle of the XIXth century. The collections are divided into seven departments: Oriental Antiquities (with a section dedicated to Islamic Art), Egyptian Antiquities (with a section dedicated to Coptic Art), Greek, Etruscan and Roman Antiquities; and, covering the modern period, Paintings, Sculptures, Objets d'art and Prints and Drawings. In addition, there is a section dedicated to the history of the Louvre, which includes in particular the medieval moats erected by Philippe Auguste in 1190, which were discovered during work on the Grand Louvre project.
 The evolution of the Louvre is still going on. The current reorganization is aimed at displaying its collections around the current reception area situated under the pyramid. The seven departments will be retained, whilst a rapprochement in chronological and geographical terms is to be encouraged. Movement from one department to the other will continue to take place without transition. The departments are located in areas which may be dispersed around the interior of the palace, but are still arranged with reference to the three wings of the building: Denon, to the south, along the Seine; Sully, to the east, around the Cour Carrˇe; and Richelieu, to the north, along the rue de Rivoli.
 Some of the departments have been completely renovated over the last few years, further renovation works will take place until 1998. An increasing number of the works exhibited will benefit from improved presentation.