The opening of one of the world’s most anticipated cultural attractions is finally announced.

Some 10 years, 8 months and 250 days after the signing of the unprecedented inter-governmental agreement that kick-started the project, it was announced the Louvre Abu Dhabi will open to the public on November 11.

The much-anticipated announcement was made to the world’s media by the Louvre Abu Dhabi’s director, Manuel Rabaté, and Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, chairman of the Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority (TCA) at a ceremony that was also attended by Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Culture and Knowledge Development, its architect Jean Nouvel, Jean-Luc Martinez, president of the Louvre Museum in Paris and the French minister of culture, Françoise Nyssen.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, tweeted in Arabic, English and French the UAE boosts its global cultural presence with the museum’s opening.

“Abu Dhabi has put its hand on its heart and said that the Louvre Abu Dhabi’s messages are ones that it wants to send to the rest of the world: messages of unity, acceptance, connectivity and tolerance,” he said.

“These were messages that were important 1,000 years ago but are even more important today and Abu Dhabi is the beacon that will broadcast these messages to the Arab world and to the rest of the world.”

Source: TheNational