Europe '81: Paris Right Bank

September 17, 1981

My second day in Paris began on the city's Right Bank with a visit to the world's largest art museum, the Musée du Louvre. The museum is housed in a former royal palace and is classified a historic monument. Here at the Louvre I came face to face with great pieces of art, in a simpler time before the extensive security measures we encounter today.

The Right Bank of Paris

In my trip diary I described the Louvre as enormous and listed some of the pieces of art I'd seen: Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa, Watteau's painting of Gilles (now known as Pierrot), and the armless Greek statue Venus de Milo. Admission was 9 francs ($1.90 CAD) and there was no security screening at the entrance. The Louvre Pyramid seen in the photos below wasn't installed until 1988.

The Louvre Palace, Paris (2010)

The Louvre Pyramid (2010)

Statue of King Louis XIV, Louvre Courtyard (2010)

Inside the Louvre Pyramid (2010)

I remember standing in front of the Mona Lisa. The painting was much smaller than I expected. And I could've reached out to touch the masterpiece, which in 1981 was just another painting on the walls of the Louvre. Since 2005 she's been getting the full celebrity treatment: displayed, alone, on a freestanding wall in the Salle des Etats, protected from vandalism behind bullet-proof glass in a special climate-controlled case.

The Mona Lisa (2010)

Before leaving the Louvre I bought a print of a Monet painting entitled The Luncheon (Monet's Garden at Argenteuil from the museum gift shop for 8 francs ($1.70 CAD). I don't have it any more. Then I strolled past the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel and through the Jardin du Tuileries to the Musée du Jeu de Paume.

Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel (1981)

Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel (2010)

Jardin du Tuileries (1981)

Jardin du Tuileries (2010)

Jardin du Tuileries (2010)

Jardin du Tuileries (1981)

Jardin du Tuileries (2010)

La Seine et la Marne (2010)

Western Entrance to the Tuileries Gardens (2010)

Fame Mounted on Pegasus (2010)

At the Jeu de Pomme, located near the western entrance to the Jardin du Tuileries, I saw more modern works by Monet, Manet and Van Gogh. Admission was only 3.50 francs ($0.75 CAD). Impressionist art and other works created between 1848 and 1914 were later moved to the new Musée d'Orsay across the river when it opened in 1986.

Musée d'Orsay, Paris (2010)

After this extravaganza of great art I continued my walk through Place de la Concorde with its towering Egyptian obelisk, along the famed Avenue des Champs Elysées to the massive Arc de Triomphe.

Obelisk on Place de la Concorde (1981)

Place de la Concorde (2010)

Champs Elysees (2010)

Arc de Triomphe (2010)

I covered quite a bit of ground on my second day in Paris so I'll leave my cruise on the River Seine until next time.