The group had some down time in the morning so I conspired (or was coerced, depending on your source) to take a small sub-group to the Louvre Museum, which wasn't included in the general group itinerary.
We got there about twenty minutes before the museum opened. Good timing too, the next fifteen minutes would see the queue triple in length.
I've learned from my previous visit that a plan of attack is absolutely necessary when visiting the Louvre.
Everyone wants to see the Big Three - the Mona Lisa, the Winged Victory of Samothrace, and the Venus di Milo. The trick is to head directly, without stop, to the Mona Lisa, which is usually the most crowded, and then make your way to the other two.
The Mona Lisa room had only a scattering of visitors, a stark contrast against the ten people-deep huddle I experienced last time. I could actually do the walk-around-the-painting-and-see-if-her-eyes-follow experiment (and they did, spooky).
Someone told me that if you spend one second per piece, it would still take three months to see everything. So to say that the Louvre Museum has a big collection is an understatement. While I'm sure everyone has their favourites, I think a general consensus can be made on particular pieces that are worthy of being on the museum's list of must-sees.
But you see, the Louvre gets a little sneaky when it comes to their recommendations. The highlighted pieces on the free map guide don't stay the same, with exception for the Big Three.
For example, the Code of Hammurabi wasn't featured in the paper map currently available from the museum, but was featured on the map from two years ago. So, if you had wanted to see the Code of Hammurabi, and without researching in advance, you would have had to look through the entire Middle Eastern collection, room by room, consuming valuable time and energy.
And afterwards, there's always another masterpiece or two that you missed because they weren't on the map. And "new" highlights warrant repeated returns.
I am totally on to your game, Louvre Museum.
Because of all the recent senseless destruction of ancient cities Hatra, Khorsabad, Nineveh (Mosul), Nimrud, and Palmyra by the terrorist group ISIS, the need to visit the Near Eastern Antiquities collection became very clear. If ISIS continues on their path of eradication, these museum pieces might be the only way we can glimpse into ancient Assyrian and Babylonian civilization.
Tell me how one can stand before these majestic Lamassu (Neo-Assyrian, 8th century BC) without a deep sense of reverence?
Let alone destroy them?!?!
Just imagine this pair of winged-man bull deities guarding a doorway to a grand city/palace of Sargon II.
Interestingly, the sculptures are depicted with five legs. This was done to create two perspectives: from the front, they look to be standing, but in motion when viewed from the side.
A very, very neat technique.
According to wikipedia, lamassus represent the "zodiacs, parent-stars, or constellations," which reminds me of the winged-centaur beings in Madeleine L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time.
The craftsmanship was simply phenomenal. The amount of details - the curls of the beard, feathers of the wing, the striations of the feathers...
Everything in the Lamassu room just completely blew me away.
One of a series that decorated the outer facade of Sargon II's throne room, and would have stood in between pairs of Lamassu lining the wall.
hero, likely based on Gilgamesh, represents the powers of the king and is meant to both impress and intimidate. And because the elevation of the throne room, the outer facade with the imposing Lamassus and Heros could be seen from miles away.
In case it's difficult to tell from the photo, the hero relief stands a little over five and a half meters (that's just over eighteen feet!)
Code of Hummurabi (Babylonian,18th century BC)
One of the oldest recorded code of laws, it laid out a series of "cases" and their punishments/verdicts as decided by the king. It covered everything from commercial and contract law, to family law.
Perhaps the most famous phrase from the stele, "an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth"
And because the code covered such a wide range of topics, it also revealed details about the social and economical dynamics of the Babylonian world.
Statue of a lion (2nd century BC)
Don't you find the statue absolutely striking? Especially the eyes?
This bronze lion was one of a pair found inside a temple. The other currently resides in a Syrian museum.
It used to have sharp teeth made out of bone. But without its menacing teeth, the lion almost looks kind of cuddly and playful.
Lunch: Le Grand Colbert
We got there about twenty minutes before the museum opened. Good timing too, the next fifteen minutes would see the queue triple in length.
I've learned from my previous visit that a plan of attack is absolutely necessary when visiting the Louvre.Everyone wants to see the Big Three - the Mona Lisa, the Winged Victory of Samothrace, and the Venus di Milo. The trick is to head directly, without stop, to the Mona Lisa, which is usually the most crowded, and then make your way to the other two.
The Mona Lisa room had only a scattering of visitors, a stark contrast against the ten people-deep huddle I experienced last time. I could actually do the walk-around-the-painting-and-see-if-her-eyes-follow experiment (and they did, spooky).
In thirty minutes, this hall would become a zoo.
The Apollo Gallery
The most beautiful room of Louvre, in this blogger's opinion.
Select pieces of the French Crown Jewels
A significant portion of the French Crown Jewels were auctioned off in the late 19th century in order to deter further royalist plots.
Marble and Pietra Dura Tabletop
Amazing craftsmanship (difficult to tell because of the glare from the glass protector). The painting-like panels are, in fact, mosiacs using marble and semi-precious stones. Each panel featured a different bird, all looking equally impressive in their realism. If I owned this table, I would never be able to get any work done.
Someone told me that if you spend one second per piece, it would still take three months to see everything. So to say that the Louvre Museum has a big collection is an understatement. While I'm sure everyone has their favourites, I think a general consensus can be made on particular pieces that are worthy of being on the museum's list of must-sees.
But you see, the Louvre gets a little sneaky when it comes to their recommendations. The highlighted pieces on the free map guide don't stay the same, with exception for the Big Three.
For example, the Code of Hammurabi wasn't featured in the paper map currently available from the museum, but was featured on the map from two years ago. So, if you had wanted to see the Code of Hammurabi, and without researching in advance, you would have had to look through the entire Middle Eastern collection, room by room, consuming valuable time and energy.
And afterwards, there's always another masterpiece or two that you missed because they weren't on the map. And "new" highlights warrant repeated returns.
I am totally on to your game, Louvre Museum.
Sarcophagi of the Spouses
Etruscan, 6th-century BC
Animal cruelty!!! Someone call the cops!
9:30ish - the tour groups are starting to arrive.
I'll try my best to label everything properly but bear with me if I can't okay?
Piece: Unknown, but I shall call it "Tall Skinny Bronze Dude"
Because of all the recent senseless destruction of ancient cities Hatra, Khorsabad, Nineveh (Mosul), Nimrud, and Palmyra by the terrorist group ISIS, the need to visit the Near Eastern Antiquities collection became very clear. If ISIS continues on their path of eradication, these museum pieces might be the only way we can glimpse into ancient Assyrian and Babylonian civilization.
Let alone destroy them?!?!
Just imagine this pair of winged-man bull deities guarding a doorway to a grand city/palace of Sargon II.
Interestingly, the sculptures are depicted with five legs. This was done to create two perspectives: from the front, they look to be standing, but in motion when viewed from the side.
A very, very neat technique.
According to wikipedia, lamassus represent the "zodiacs, parent-stars, or constellations," which reminds me of the winged-centaur beings in Madeleine L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time.
The craftsmanship was simply phenomenal. The amount of details - the curls of the beard, feathers of the wing, the striations of the feathers...Everything in the Lamassu room just completely blew me away.
Series of Bas Reliefs
I can't find any reference to it on the Louvre database (woefully incomplete and difficult to search) but online search (thank you Google) revealed the winged-being as Ahura Mazda, god of an ancient Iranian religion called Zoroastrianism. And the others his worshippers.
Another series of bas reliefs
Left: Dignitary, Middle: Servants Holding the Rolling Throne of the King (Neo-Assyrian, 8th century). The latter relief came from Sargon II's palace in Khorsabad, one of the cities attacked by ISIS.
Hero Taming a Lion/Lion-taming Spirit
One of a series that decorated the outer facade of Sargon II's throne room, and would have stood in between pairs of Lamassu lining the wall.
hero, likely based on Gilgamesh, represents the powers of the king and is meant to both impress and intimidate. And because the elevation of the throne room, the outer facade with the imposing Lamassus and Heros could be seen from miles away.
In case it's difficult to tell from the photo, the hero relief stands a little over five and a half meters (that's just over eighteen feet!)
Artist Renderings of Sargon II's Palace
Victory Stele of Naram-Sin (Akkadian, 2250 BC)
It's hard to believe that this stele is over 4,000 years old.
The stele commemorates the victory of King Naram-Sin over the mountainous Lullubi people. The relief features the king climbing the mountain, followed by his soldiers, while his enemy fall at his feet. The details are remarkably crisp, given its age.
What's even more remarkable is the composition. The artisan rejected the traditional horizontal segment format for the far more interesting, almost triangular, composition where the king is the focal point.
Ancient Mesopotamian statues, mostly from 2nd and 3rd millenium BC (!!!)
The small seated statue on the right is of Gudea, prince of Lagash, dedicated to the god Ningishzida
Code of Hummurabi (Babylonian,18th century BC)One of the oldest recorded code of laws, it laid out a series of "cases" and their punishments/verdicts as decided by the king. It covered everything from commercial and contract law, to family law.
Perhaps the most famous phrase from the stele, "an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth"
And because the code covered such a wide range of topics, it also revealed details about the social and economical dynamics of the Babylonian world.
Statue of a lion (2nd century BC)This bronze lion was one of a pair found inside a temple. The other currently resides in a Syrian museum.
It used to have sharp teeth made out of bone. But without its menacing teeth, the lion almost looks kind of cuddly and playful.
The following friezes are all from the Palace of King Darius I (Persia, 5th century BC)
Frieze of Griffin - head and forelegs of a lion, ears and body of a bull, goat horns, and hindlegs like an eagle
Frieze of Archers
Panel with Spinxes
Frieze of Lions
One of the most impressive items from the already very impressive Near Eastern Antiquities collection - a column capital from the audience hall of the palace of Darius I.
The capital capped one of the 36 columns that stood in the audience hall.
The fantastic artistry aside, I was already in awe by the sheer size of the capital by itself. To find out that together with the rest of the column, it stood 21 meters (that's about 6 stories!!!) tall, was something that I didn't think was possible for that time period. And to have so many as well!
Even by today's engineering standards, it would still be a marvel to be seen.
Rendition of the column, complete with its capital, and its placement in the throne room.
We then proceeded to the much more crowded Egyptian section.
Unfortunately, I was running low on both time and camera memory so most of the photos were taken by someone else, and hence, the lack of commentary.
Colossal Statue of Ramesses II (13th century BC)
Spoon in the Form of a Young Girl Carrying a Vase
Thought to be a cosmetic spoon.
And my fascination with animal statuary continues.
Ushabti
Canopic jars
Sphinxes, sphinxes, sphinxes.
We weren't quite finished with the Egyptian rooms (then again, how can you ever really be finished at the Louvre? There's always something else to be discovered) before we had to make our way to roundez-vous for lunch.
On the way, we managed a peak at one of the very charming covered shopping passageways of Paris. This was the place to shop in the mid-19th-century, before the Champs-Elysee. Definitely worth a revisit based on the Google photos, along with the nearby Galerie Colbert.
Galerie Vivienne
Lunch: Le Grand Colbert
Thanks for the photos and the commentary! I feel both jealous and learned, lol! I'm glad you decided to showcase these two sections of the museum (not that there's a bad section to showcase!).
ReplyDeleteDid you know that there are replicas of the Persian friezes in the ROM? More bright and "whole" but somehow the ones in your photos are much more spectacular and impactful!
I love that even the rooms that that the artwork is housed in is so beautiful. It's almost not fair....
Wouldn't it be funny (mostly in a horrible way) if the English royal family bought the French crown jewels and used that to cement their claim on the French throne?
Thanks for letting us in on the Louvre's "game". Tricksy crumbums! We're already going to come back. Can't you help visitors make each trip there as efficient as possible?
I did see the Persian friezes at the ROM and I completely agree that the replica doesn't have the same impact. Maybe because it was slightly smaller in scale? Or the way the Louvre displayed the friezes?
DeleteI think the English royal family and American "old stock" dynastic families did buy a good portion of the lesser French jewels, just like they would eventually swoop in with the Russian royal jewels post-Revolution. I guess no one can resist a good fire sale.
The Louvre is really very tricky. Sections of the museums also take turns being closed on a weekly basis so say if you went on a Thursday like we did, you would have missed the entire Dutch Masters section, which one of the travel companions was pretty disappointed about since he only had the one day.