The Winged Victory of Samothrace is in room 703, the landing at the top of the Daru staircase, in the Louvre's Denon wing on level 1, as of October 2026. With her ship-shaped base the monument stands about five and a half metres tall.
The Winged Victory of Samothrace stands on the landing at the top of the Daru staircase, room 703, in the Louvre's Denon wing on level 1. The Louvre's own name for the room is the Palier Samothrace. That was her place on the museum's plan in October 2026. The Mona Lisa is nearby, in room 711.
What you are looking at
She is Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, landing on the prow of a ship. The ship is carved stone too, part of the same monument. With the ship-shaped base the monument stands about five and a half metres tall. The figure is Parian marble and the prow is grey Lartos marble, built from 16 blocks laid in three tiers.
Look at the cloth. The thin dress is pressed against her body as if a sea wind were blowing straight into her, and heavy folds swirl around her legs. Her head, neck and arms are missing, and so is the right wing. The right wing you see is a plaster model, while the left is original marble.
How she got to Paris
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A French diplomat, Charles Champoiseau, found the first pieces on the island of Samothrace in April 1863. The statue reached Paris in 1864. A hand found on the island in 1950 is shown in a case in this room.
Who made her, and why
Scholars have long debated who set her up and which sea battle she celebrates. The Louvre dates the marble to about 200 to 175 BC. The Greek government considers the statue plundered and wants it back; it has stayed in the Louvre.
The staircase
The stairs were redone in 1934, and she was set forward on a modern block about forty-five centimetres high. When war was declared in 1939 she was taken out of Paris to the château of Valençay, and she was back at the top of the stairs in July 1945. Notice how everything leans forward, as if the steps below were the sea and she had just come ashore.
How this fits the Roamer guide
The Winged Victory is on both "The Louvre in 90 Minutes" and "The Louvre in Two Hours" in Roamer's independent audio guide to the Louvre. Open room 703 and play its story, or start a route: the Louvre guide. For the rest of the museum, by wing and room number, read what to see at the Louvre. It is not affiliated with the museum, and admission is separate.
Cover photo: Shonagon, Victory of Samothrace on the Daru staircase landing, via Wikimedia Commons (CC0).
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