Musée du Louvre has announced the launch of the most ambitious restoration project in the history of its Department of Paintings: the restoration of the extraordinary Marie de’ Medici Series by Peter Paul Rubens, comprising 24 monumental canvases.

This is the largest commission that Rubens ever received and completed, at a time when he was at the height of his fame in Europe. The canvases encompass nearly 293 square metres of painted surface, which will be restored in situ in Room 801 of the Richelieu Wing. This gallery will be converted into a restoration studio for the project.

The restoration project was prepared over the past decade and the decision to restore the entire series was made after a condition assessment carried out in 2016, which was validated by preliminary studies in 2020 and 2023. The latter study established the first complete set of scientific imaging records for the works. Several paintings are in a concerning state of repair, with areas of the paint layer lifting, in addition to a degraded appearance caused by the oxidation of varnish layers.

Restoration work is scheduled to begin in October 2026 with the support of an international scientific committee and is expected to last four years.