Louvre Abu Dhabi Director highlights museum’s universality with new ancient Mayan artefacts on display

ABU DHABI / WAM

Louvre Abu Dhabi has expanded its global cultural reach by introducing, for the first time, a collection of ancient Mayan artefacts on September 20. In a statement to the Emirates News Agency (WAM), Manuel Rabaté, Director of Louvre Abu Dhabi, spoke in-depth about the significance of this collaboration between Mexico and the UAE, describing it as “a fantastic collaboration between two countries and between two museum systems”, connecting civilisations from across the world.
The exhibition features prominent artefacts from Mexico in collaboration with the Mexican National Institute of Anthropology and History, including the striking Olmec head, which now stands prominently at the museum’s entrance. The collection also includes pieces from the Mayan and Teotihuacan cultures, offering visitors a rare glimpse into Mexico’s ancient heritage.
The process of bringing these artefacts to Abu Dhabi took three years of planning, according to Rabaté. “In the museum world, it’s about trust and working together,” he said. The selection of the pieces and the logistics of transporting them to Abu Dhabi were meticulously coordinated to meet the highest international standards.
“This is just the first step,” Rabaté noted, hinting at further cultural exchanges between the two nations in the future.