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medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture Apologies for cross posting. I haven't seen this come through on these lists, so in case others have not seen it.... -------- Original Message -------- Subject: [Mittelalter] Petition: The Louvre is in Danger : Against the Plan to dismantle its Collections. Date: Mon, 23 Feb 2015 08:04:36 +0100 From: Gerhard F. Lutz <[log in to unmask]> To: [log in to unmask] *The Louvre is in Danger : Against the Plan to dismantle its Collections.* https://www.change.org/p/monsieur-le-president-de-la-republique-annuler-le-projet-des-r%C3%A9serves-du-louvre-%C3%A0-li%C3%A9vin We appeal to the French President  Mr. President, the Louvre museum, which was founded in 1793 for the safe-keeping and display of the nation's artistic heritage, is under one of the most serious threats of its history. It has been decided to remove the works of art which are held in its reserve at the moment, in order to transfer them to Liévin, commune of Nord-Pas-de-Calais, two hundred kilometres from Paris, with inadequate rail connection, to be stored in a building, still in the planning stage, called "Conservation pole of the Louvre Museum". Initially the reason for this removal was to safeguard some part of the art works in case of a potential centennial flooding of the river Seine. Through the reason of this removal was to safeguard some of art works in case of a potential flooding of the river Seine it has now been extended to all the storages held in the palace. The consequences of this decision, detrimental to the future of the Louvre, can be seen in the light of three threats. Firstly, harm to the national Heritage : as has been shown in the past on a smaller scale, the transport en masse of hundreds of thousands of objects of various shapes and sizes, is likely to lead to serious damage or loss of any number of them. This damage of major heritage works of art remains a serious on-going risk, given the repeated journeys to and fro between Paris and Liévin, necessary and inevitable in the course of up-dating shows in the galleries, essential conservation carried out routinely on the works, and, above all, in the handling required when preparing exhibitions organized all over the world in which the Louvre is called upon to participate. Given the budgetary restrictions imposed by the current financial climate, a down-grading of professional standards is to be feared. Secondly, scientific damage : the reserves have been, are, and always will be, a source of fundamental research which every reputable museum, and first and foremost the Louvre, must foster, linked in with the priceless libraries and documentation accumulated over the years for every discipline represented in the eight constituted departments of the institution. The researchers within the museum are constantly using these reserves, they are frequently and legitimately visited by foreign, as well as french, scientists who come from all over the world to Paris. This essential research will become problematic, and even impossible, if the reserves are transferred to Liévin. The works of art will be deprived of the intellectual and scientific infrastructure from which they benefit today, they will be confined in a smaller space. The annexe premises and the staff needed to welcome researchers will be rapidly overrun by the influx of requests concentrated in a single place. Lastly and not least, financial and ecological risks : the two hundred kilometres which separate Paris from Liévin will bring about a spectacular rise in the running costs of the Louvre, collateral damage of this added cost will show up in the potential degradation of the quality of the cultural offer. To be taken into account also is the increase in the carbon footprint of our country, given the inevitable journeys to be made by road. Let it not be said that in Voltaire's homeland, common sense has lost its footing! Consequently, to avoid an artistic, cultural and financial aberration, as yet unequalled, we, the signees of this appeal, who are devoted to the cultural flagship that is the Louvre, beloved and respected by the whole world, are appealing to you, Mr. President, to completely re-think the plan. We desperately hope that a better in-house solution may be found, one in which common sense and good guardianship, for the pursuit of development of the Louvre which belongs to us all. To this end, we urgently request that a diligent study be carried out of the various possible alternatives, within the heart of the palace and its surrounding facilities. We invite everyone in the world who loves the Louvre and all it stands for, to join our plea, to sign our petition and spread it far and wide. Sponsoring committee : Daniel ALCOUFFE ; Daphna BENTOR ; Geneviève BRESC ; Dominique CHARPIN ; Michel CHAUVEAU ; Danielle GABORIT ; Jean-René GABORIT ; Jean-Marc LUCE ; Frédéric MAGUET ; Krzysztof POMIAN ; Jacques REVEL ; Didier RYKNER ; Françoise VIATTE http://www.latribunedelart.com/une-petition-mise-en-ligne-contre-le-demenagement-des-reserves-du-louvre ---------------------------------- Dr. Gerhard Lutz Wiss. Mitarbeiter / Curator Dom-Museum Hildesheim Domhof 18-21 31134 Hildesheim Germany Tel.: â??- â??/*NEU : +49 (5121) 307-763*/ Mob.: +49 (177) 5107363 ---------------------- III. FORUM KUNST DES MITTELALTERS Hildesheim, 16.-19. September 2015 www.mittelalterkongress.de <http://www.mittelalterkongress.de> MAILINGLISTE - MAILING LIST Forum Kunst des Mittelalters - Forum Medieval Art http://www.kunsthistoriker.org/mailingliste-mittelalter.html ********************************************************************** To join the list, send the message: subscribe medieval-religion YOUR NAME to: [log in to unmask] To send a message to the list, address it to: [log in to unmask] To leave the list, send the message: unsubscribe medieval-religion to: [log in to unmask] In order to report problems or to contact the list's owners, write to: [log in to unmask] For further information, visit our web site: http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/medieval-religion