Mona Lisa Moved for Louvre Renovation Ahead of Leonardo Exhibition

The Louvre will relocate the Mona Lisa to the Galerie de Médicis from July 17, 2019, until October 2019, to allow for the renovation of the Salle des États, where it is usually displayed. The move is part of the Grand Louvre campaign, which has renovated over 34,000 m² of the museum since 2014. The painting will be placed in a climate-controlled protective case on a temporary wall. The renovation is the first in 14 years. The relocation precedes the major exhibition 'Leonardo Da Vinci' running from October 24, 2019, to February 24, 2020. The Galerie de Médicis, located about 100 meters away in the Richelieu wing, is one of the largest rooms in the museum and can accommodate the thousands of daily visitors. Other works in the Salle des États will also be moved, except for Veronese's 'The Wedding at Cana', which will be wrapped in protective covering due to its size. The museum confirmed that the Mona Lisa is too fragile to travel outside the Louvre, ruling out any international tour. Previous moves occurred between 1992-1995 to the Grande Galerie and between 2001-2005 to the Salle Rosa.