These CEILINGS FLOOR me!!

We went to the Louvre today. This building that holds volumes of amazing art work, is an amazing piece of art work itself. The Louvre building was actually a palace for royalty in the Middle Ages and therefore is palatial in every sense of the word. Below are just a few glimpses of the many beautiful ceilings. These ceilings just floor me!

For now I'll just focus on three of the Louvre's famous ladies. First, there's the Mona Lisa, or La Joconde. I must ask...why is such a small painting...on poplar wood...such a "big deal"? It seems that its popularity and rise to fame are dependent on a crime committed in 1911. La Joconde was stolen from the museum by an employee who simply hid it under his coat. The painting remained missing for two years and by the time it was retrieved it had become quite a famous painting indeed. And now it has been acclaimed as "the best known, the most visited, the most written about...work of art in the world." And besides...if you're particularly fond of body odor and being pushed and shoved in crowds, you'll love visiting La Joconde! (from The Moving of the Mona Lisa)

The Venus de Milo was sculpted in 120 B.C. (yeah...you heard me....B.C.!) and was found on a Greek island in the 1800's.

And my personal favorite woman of the Louvre is the Winged Victory of Samothrace. It is dated at 190 B.C. (there's that B.C. again!) and was found in the 1800's on an island of Greece. I find it amazing that both of these beautiful sculptures were made in the second century before Christ and found in the 1800's. What were they doing for all those ensuing centuries??

I'm sure I'll write more about the Louvre in the days to come, but for now I'll leave you with a "Where's Waldo" shot. (You may have to click on this to see it enlarged to appreciate it.)

Question of the day: What is the square footage of the Louvre palace/museum?