Starting as a fortress, it was eventually transformed into a palace until the establishment of absolutist rule led to the sudden transfer of the court to Versailles, and finally in 1793 the Louvre became the prototype of the modern art museum. It was also part of the French president’s 15-billion-franc program to provide a series of modern monuments to symbolize France’s central role in art, politics and world economy at the end of the 20th century. Critics felt the ultramodern design of the glass pyramid with its steel connections and rods, was in stark contrast to the classical architecture of the Louvre. Excavating the plaza and constructing underground linkages to the existing wings of the museum, was a respectful gesture to the existing classical structure. Natural light brought in through the glass pyramid reduces the use of energy while providing a dramatic view of the sky and the outline of the buildings around the courtyard. An added bonus that surfaced in the process of excavating the plaza in preparation for the construction of the underground museum was the discovery that the site once contained a moat that was land filled by King François in 1528, thus sealing in thousands of objects that were used for more than seven centuries by Parisians.

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