The Galerie du temps
The Galerie du Temps (Gallery of Time) is the true heartbeat of the Louvre-Lens. More than 200 masterpieces loaned by the Musée du Louvre are displayed in an open space covering 3,000 m2.
The chronological display extends from the 4th millennium BC to the mid 19th century, offering a unique journey through the history of art and humankind. Intermingling eras, techniques and civilizations, it makes it possible to look at the Louvre’s collections differently and discover them afresh.
The curators of the Galerie du Temps are Laurence des Cars, president-director of the Musée du Louvre, and Vincent Pomarède, director of cultural programming and outreach at the Musée du Louvre.
The installation was designed by Studio Adrien Gardère.
The Galerie du Temps is supported by the Crédit Agricole Nord de France.
New masterpieces to discover
The Galerie du Temps offers a unique glimpse of art history, providing key pointers in a veritable distillation of the Louvre’s collections. Its collection, as it were, is made up of more than 200 works – or groups of works – from the Louvre’s galleries. But the display is not fixed: every year, on the date of the museum’s anniversary in December, dozens of works are replaced and the display is renewed.
Major masterpieces on display include, Murillo’s Young Beggar, Joseph Vernet’s Seascape, Botticelli’s Virgin and Child, Tintoretto’s Susanna Bathing and Johann Christian Neuber’s Teschen Table.
‘In the Louvre palace, visitors can be overwhelmed by the extraordinary scale of the building and the maze of rooms. At the Louvre-Lens, however, they encounter a place where they can take in the prolific history of human creation at a glance. The Louvre-Lens thus makes it possible to see the Louvre’s collections with a fresh eye, to rediscover them even.’
Jean-Luc Martinez, president-director of the Musée du Louvre, curator of the Galerie du Temps
Explorez la Galerie du temps, depuis chez vous.
The museum is open every day except Tuesday, from 10am to 6pm (admission and ticket desks close at 5:15pm).
The museum is closed on Tuesdays, 1 January, 1 May and 25 December.
The town of Lens can be reached by the A21 motorway, which links up with the A1 – E17 (Lille–Paris) and the A26 – E15 (Calais–Reims).
Free parking:
Paul Bert car park (rue Paul Bert in Lens), Jean Jaurès car park in Liévin (4 rue du Dr Piette), Stade Bollaert-Delelis car park (reached via the rue Boulloche in Lens).
Admission to the Gallery of Time and the Glass Pavilion is free.
The Môm’Art charter was drawn up by parents and visitors keen to bring children to the museum. Its aim is to help museums and cultural sites encourage visits by children and families.
