How the Collection was Formed

Since 1847 the Louvre has included an Assyrian museum which was closely linked to the archeological discovery of the Ancient Orient. Paul-Emile Botta, Ernest Renan, and subsequently Ernest de Sarzez (with the discovery of the site at Tello and of the Sumer civilisation) encouraged the formation of a special section. Their efforts were crowned in 1881 with the creation of an autonomous department of Oriental Antiquities.

The collections bear witness to several civilisations spread over a vast geographical area: Iran, Mesopotamia, the Levant and Anatolia, Cyprus and Punic North Africa.

Louvre Menu