The Louvre Museum in Paris has temporarily closed its renowned Campana Gallery on Monday as a precautionary measure after a safety audit revealed serious structural weaknesses in the building's support beams. The closure affects nine rooms dedicated to ancient Greek ceramics, adding to the challenges facing France's most prestigious cultural institution following last month's devastating $102 million jewelry heist.
The museum announced that the gallery closure was necessary while investigations are conducted into structural problems with beams supporting the floors of the second story above the exhibition space. Located on the first floor of the Sully wing at the eastern end of the massive complex, the Campana Gallery houses one of the world's most significant collections of ancient Greek pottery and ceramics. The second floor above the gallery, currently used as office space, has been identified as having critical structural issues that could potentially compromise visitor safety.
This latest setback comes at a particularly difficult time for the world's most visited art museum, which has been under intense scrutiny following a brazen daylight robbery last month. A four-person gang used an extendable ladder and angle grinders to break into the museum in broad daylight, stealing jewelry worth an estimated $102 million while shocked visitors looked on. The audacious heist exposed serious security vulnerabilities at the institution, which welcomed 8.7 million visitors last year.
The structural problems at the Louvre are not entirely unexpected, as the museum's leadership had previously warned about deteriorating conditions throughout the former royal palace. In a January memo, Louvre director Laurence des Cars had sounded the alarm about widespread damage in various museum spaces, with some areas described as being in "very poor condition." Des Cars specifically highlighted concerns about sections of the building that were no longer watertight and others experiencing significant temperature fluctuations that could endanger the preservation of priceless artworks.
As part of the safety measures, 65 employees who normally work in the affected second-floor office space are being relocated while comprehensive structural investigations take place. The museum emphasized that the gallery closure is purely precautionary and unrelated to the recent robbery, though it represents another unwelcome challenge for an institution already facing severe criticism over its security shortcomings and maintenance issues.
The closure of the Campana Gallery highlights broader infrastructure challenges facing one of the world's most important cultural institutions. While the museum works to address these structural concerns, visitors will be unable to access the significant collection of ancient Greek ceramics that represents centuries of Mediterranean artistic achievement. The duration of the closure remains uncertain as engineers and safety experts work to assess and address the structural weaknesses in this historic section of the palace.
