Due to the extremely high temperatures starting Sunday, 21 June, we encourage you to adjust the pace of your visit and protect yourself from the heat. Take your time, wear light clothing, and stay hydrated! All the information you need can be found at https://www.info.gouv.fr/risques/canicule-et-vagues-de-chaleur
Please note that reservations are required to enter the museum. This allows us to provide you with a better visitor experience. Some galleries may be closed during the heat wave to protect the artworks.
Thank you for your understanding.
Ancient masterpieces from the royal collections
The Louvre’s Masterpieces
The caryatids
Jean Goujon
Under Henri II, the Louvre completed its transition from a medieval fortress into a Renaissance palace. The Salle des Caryatides was originally a splendid ballroom, designed in classical style by the architect Pierre Lescot. It has a musicians’ gallery, supported by four Roman-inspired ‘caryatids’; these sculpted female figures serving as columns were the architect’s way of elevating King Henri II to the status of the Roman emperor Augustus!
PLEASE NOTE: This work is not currently on display in the museum.
The room’s purpose changed in 1692 when it was used to display classical sculptures, which French royalty began to collect in the Renaissance. One of the first masterpieces to enter the royal collections, the statue of Diana the Huntress was joined in 1807 by the Sleeping hermaphrodite, purchased by Napoleon I. To understand the nature of this fascinating figure, it has to be seen from all sides.
Festivities and bloodshed
The Salle des Caryatides was used as both a ballroom and a court of justice. And it was here, in 1572, that Marguerite de Valois, the famous 'Queen Margot', married Henri de Navarre, the future King Henri IV. Only a few days later, on 24 August, Protestant nobles who had attended the wedding were assassinated in the Louvre in the notorious Saint Bartholomew’s Day Massacre.