About This Location
Look straight into the Cour Napoléon and let your eyes settle on the sharp glass shape at the center. The Louvre Pyramid is the museum’s modern “front door,” placed here to bring order to the crowds by leading visitors down into a large underground entrance hall instead of squeezing everyone through scattered palace doors. The pyramid was designed by architect I. M. Pei as the centerpiece of the Grand Louvre project launched under President François Mitterrand in the 1980s - and when it was proposed, it caused a real Paris argument. Traditionalists saw it as an invasion of modern glass in a royal courtyard. Supporters saw a clean solution that let the historic façades stay visible, framed rather than hidden. Now move a little and watch what happens. The pyramid reflects the sky like water, then turns nearly invisible from another angle. That transparency was not easy - Pei wanted the glass to be exceptionally clear, so the palace stonework could be admired through it. The Louvre says it took two years of research to develop this extra-clear glass, produced by Saint-Gobain, covering about 2,000 square meters of glazing. A fun detail to share with anyone traveling with you: the pyramid does not have 666 panes of glass. That rumor became famous, but the Louvre and project documentation cite 673 panes in total - 603 diamond-shaped and 70 triangular pieces. Once you know, it becomes a little game to spot the triangles along the edges. This spot is also a perfect “before the museum” moment. Look around the courtyard and notice the contrast - centuries of carved stone, then a late-20th-century geometry lesson dropped into the middle. The pyramid is not trying to imitate the Louvre. It is trying to guide you into it, like a modern compass pointing straight down into the museum’s heart.