The Louvre Through the Ages: from the Royal Residence to the Museum

Later, the castle will be transformed into a royal residence, making this palace the most important one until Louis XIV’s creation of Versailles.
No wonder if the place became the kingdom’s most valuable jewel box, filled with illuminated books, precious fabrics, priceless gemstones and gold items. For it’s in this royal palace that the french monarchs stored the country’s most precious items.
What more natural then, than to make this place a national museum ? And what a museum !
With the French Revolution, all the royal properties became national assets, displayed in the Louvre, and the first museum open to the public. With Napoleon’s conquests, the national collection will be supplemented with even more paintings, sculptures, drawings, ceramics, antiques, coming from the four corners of the ancient world. This is why you will see in the Louvre very unique pieces from the Antique world, as well as masterpieces from the Italian Renaissance. And also a part of the French Crown Jewels and among them, one of the biggest and most valuable gemstone, the Regent diamond.

Meet our guide, skip the line and come on a tour of this extraordinary institution that will take you to a fascinating time travel in French and world history.

What makes this tour special?

• You will be guided through the most important places in order to make sure you won’t miss any of the highlights – including the ones most visitors ignore – and get an overview of the fascinating history of the building.
• During this tour, your guide will be giving you tips to make your journey most enjoyable. If you’re really keen on art history, we will indeed suggest you make the best of your visit and spend the whole day in the museum. The Louvre is a small town. You can eat, have a drink and go shopping in there.
• After your 3 hours visit, we will make sure you’re familiar with the whole building, and if you wish to stay longer to explore the museum, we will recommend things to see, good places to have lunch, snacks or drinks according to your budget.
• Get our tips to continue your visit by your own if you wish to extend your experience.