Musée du Louvre and its pyramid..

The Musée du Louvre is an amazing example of architectural metamorphoses as it was created in several phases. It was first built in the late 12th century as a fortress to protect the city of Paris which was Europe's largest city at the time. It has since been a palace to numerous royals and several extensions have been made to it by different architects. At the end of the 18th century, part of it became a museum that displayed some of the most famous paintings in the world which over the years to follow, gradually took over the entire premises. Making the Louvre one of the largest, historic museums in the world. The most recent addition to the Louvre was the construction of the glass pyramid, which is now the main entrance. The pyramid was built in 1989 by an American architect named I.M. Pei and lets the sunlight to come in on the underground floor. It is an amazing structure made of glass and metal, surrounded by three smaller pyramids, and reaching almost 25meters into the sky. I love how it reflects and lets the light in during the day and seems to sparkle at night. It was created because of a series of problems with the Louvre's original main entrance, which couldn't handle the many visitors that came to the museum everyday. Visitors now enter through the pyramid and go down into the huge glass lobby then head up into the main Louvre buildings. The fact that it serves a function, but also is in itself a sculpture, is what I like about the pyramid. It has an almost postmodernist feel to it that appeals to the senses. We look at it and question it. Question as to whether it should be there or not considering its surroundings. This amazing piece of architecture caused many haters when it was first built because it sharply contrasts with the classical buildings surrounding it. It is now generally accepted as a modern update and new phase of the Louvre, a building which has had many facelifts in its time.