Le Louvre, The Virtual Visit PC

• Platform:    Windows, Macintosh
• Media: DVD
• Item Quantity: 1

DVD-ROM is what makes this program superior to other virtual museum tours. Put simply, Le Louvre has more of everything: more tour information, more historical content and--most importantly--more works of art. With so much more room for data storage, Le Louvre is able to offer full-screen images of paintings and sculptures. What's more, these large images can be magnified still further, so that users can closely examine a piece. The size and quality of the images are absolutely stunning.

This treasure trove of information and pictures is also extremely accessible, because of Le Louvre's stellar design features. Like many programs of this sort, it allows users to view artworks in collections, by historical period or via a tour of the actual galleries. However, the gallery tour is less like, say, a 3-D gaming environment and more like a well-shot documentary. Users progress through a display at their own pace, with no chance of getting lost or cornered. You can pause to listen to a tour guide or continue on out of range of his speaking voice. Along the way, hot spots appear to allow you to study various paintings and sculptures in detail.

Le Louvre is not without a few weaknesses: it takes a little time to figure out the interface, and the timeline and map features are overly simplified. However, this program is a perfect tool for studying the museum and its contents; it would be especially useful for anyone planning a visit to the museum, giving them a chance to make a list of must-see works of art and brief themselves thoroughly on the museum's collections and history. Even if a trip to France isn't in your near future, Le Louvre can offer you a dose of beauty--one that can be enjoyed repeatedly and at your leisure. --Alyx Dellamonica

Manufacturer's Description
In this new edition you will find everything you loved in Le Louvre, Palace & Paintings: eight centuries of the palace's history and 100 masterpieces of European painting from the 13th century to the beginning of the 19th century. Now discover the other departments of the museum: Antiquities, Sculptures, Objets d'Art, and Graphic Arts.

Admire the greatest treasures of the ancient civilizations of Egypt and the Orient: the Seated Scribe, the Winged Assyrian Bulls from Khorsabad; Greek Etruscan and Roman masterpieces: the Venus de Milo, the Sarcophagus of the Spouses, the ideal statue of Marcellus; beautiful sculptures of the European schools: The Captives by Michelangelo, the Horses of Marly, the Milo of Crotona; magnificent objets d'art; and over fifty new paintings, sketches, and engravings by Leonardo da Vinci, Rubens, David, Delacroix, and others.

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• Software > Education & Reference > Reference > Travel & Leisure Guides
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