Special exhibition tribute to Victory of Samothrace in Louvre Museum
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Special exhibition tribute to Victory of Samothrace in Louvre Museum

The Louvre Museum to celebrate the restoration of the Winged Victory of Samothrace  is organising a special exhibition. The museum invites people to rediscover this masterpiece, which is one of the museum’s most famous artfacts, if not the most famous. The exhibition is entitled «The Winged Victory of Samothrace: Rediscovering a Masterpiece» and will open to public until June 15, 2015.

The special exhibition will display various historical documents that were taken during the statue’s conservation treatments that the Musée du Louvre undertook since the second half of the 18th century. Moreover, fragments of the statue’s right wing and the ship, which had been kept in storage, will also be displayed for the first time. This is a wonderful opportunity to learn about the Winged Victory of Samothrace in its entirety.

The exhibition will explain how the statue was found in the Sanctuary of the Great Gods on the Greek island of Samothrace in 1864, as well as looking comprehensively at the restoration process.
The Winged Victory of Samothrace , a statue of a winged goddess that declares victory, was discovered in 1863 on the island of Samothrace, which lies in the northeast Aegean Sea. The statue was in fragments at the time of excavation and although it underwent reconstruction at the Musée du Louvre in 1880 and 1884, dirt and impurities that have accumulated over the years were affecting its appearance. Its conservation treatment has been a challenge over many years. It took nearly a year to restore the statue, with a committee of international experts taking a great deal of care to avois some of the dubious decisions taken during the last restoration in 1883 – such as placing the statue on an extra block, or (badly) painting certain parts to try and even out the colour. Superficial treatment has brought the original colour back and a special mix including stone and marble dust has been used to fill some cracks.

See also:

The restored Winged Victory of Samothrace returns to Louvre

The five most important ancient Greek exhibits abroad 

Photo exhibition inspired by Ancient sculptures

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