The pavilion of Islamic art opened in the Louvre

The Louvre Museum began the week with the opening of a department dedicated to Islamic art. Over an area of five thousand square meters, located under the original glass roof, exhibited over 18,000 works created on three continents in more than twelve centuries of history. The opening ceremony was attended by French President Francois Hollande. For visitors, the new department will be available starting Saturday, September 22.

The collection presented at the Louvre, according to many experts, is one of the most exquisite in the world. Here are represented more than three thousand masterpieces belonging to the civilization that arose on the territory between Spain and India in the 7th-8th centuries. Many items are on display for the first time. Countries of the Islamic world, such as Kuwait, Oman, Morocco, Azerbaijan and Saudi Arabia, wished to participate in the creation of the exhibition by donating exhibits for the collection and providing sponsorship for the construction of the pavilion itself.

In order to organize additional exhibition space for the exposition of Islamic art, French architects and builders had to deepen the courtyard of the Louvre Museum by almost twelve meters, introducing high-pressure cement into the foundation and walls of the building. “We again did what we already did when we built the pyramid (in 1989) - we developed the bowels to free up additional space,” said one of the project architects Mario Bellini. The glass roof of the pavilion is made in the form of a flowing scarf. This makes it possible to use natural light and, at the same time, protect unique exhibits from direct sunlight.

Anna Sidorova