A visitor to the Louvre Museum in Paris will soon see a sculpture piece outside which was not there before. Here is the history.
Timeless Egypt comes to the heart of Paris, weaving an artistic bridge between millennia-old heritage and contemporary creation through the monumental sculpture “Mirror Gate II” by Pilar Zeta, a portal between the Past and the Present, on the Place du Louvre. “Mirror Gate II” is far more than a work of art: it is a symbolic portal linking Cairo and Paris. Originally exhibited facing the Pyramids of Giza, this portal returns transformed to Paris, where it will be installed opposite the Louvre.
Carved from ancestral Egyptian stones sourced from the Marmonil quarries: yellow alabaster, red Aswan granite, and Fawakheer breccia. “Mirror Gate II” represents a passageway between the age of the pharaohs and the present, a symbolic threshold inviting an inner experience. A checkerboard path at its center evokes duality and symbolic play, recalling motifs found throughout Egyptian history. The portal leads to a mirrored egg at its core, a metaphor for infinite potential, creation, and personal transformation. It invites visitors to look within themselves and reflect on their own potential at the heart of the Place du Louvre.
Installed in Paris 190 years after the Luxor Obelisk, offered by Egypt’s Viceroy Mehmet Ali, Mirror Gate II stands as a powerful symbol of the long-standing friendship between France and Egypt.
Artist Pilar Zeta is known for work that blends philosophy, geometry, symbolism, and mysticism, often incorporating architectural forms and immersive effects. Her practice explores the relationships between perception, space, and consciousness, as reflected in “Mirror Gate.”
Marmonil, which brought the artist’s creation to life, is a major player in the natural stone industry in Egypt, showcasing the heritage passed down from ancient Egyptian stone quarries and their transformation through the craftsmanship of master stonecutters, making each work a living witness to pharaonic heritage.
As an interest side note, Marmonil recently supplied over 110,000 m² of marble and granite used the Grand Egyptian Museum,including Aswan granite from the same quarry that provided the stone for the colossal statue of Ramses II that stands in the atrium. Marmonil stone is also present along the main avenue leading to the Pyramids of Giza.
Organization:
Stéphane Ruffier-Meray, installation curator.
Practical information: “Mirror Gate II” by Pilar Zeta, January 16 – February 15, 2026
About Pilar Zeta x Marmonil
In 2024, Marmonil’s journey with Pilar Zeta began in Mexico City. What began as a moment of curiosity quickly evolved into creative alignment. Drawn to Zeta’s instinctive relationship with stone, the Marmonil family was intrigued to collaborate on an equally timeless work of art. The collaboration between Marmonil and Pilar Zeta culminated in Mirror Gate, realized in Egypt against the backdrop of the Pyramids of Giza on October 2023.
From Mexico to the pyramids, the collaboration was a natural convergence of worlds: contemporary art and ancient material, united by the shared passion of natural stone as both medium and message.
About Pilar Zeta
Pilar Zeta is an Argentine multimedia artist based in Mexico, working at the intersection of philosophy, mathematics, symbolism, mysticism, and post modern architecture. Her practice engages with the construction of meaning through form, using portals, thresholds, and archetypal symbols—particularly the egg—as devices of transformation.
About Marmonil
Founded in 1963, Marmonil is a third-generation Egyptian natural-stone producer, rooted in one of the world’s oldest stone civilizations and operating at the intersection of heritage, craftsmanship, art, and contemporary architecture.
The company has collaborated with internationally recognized artists including Stephen Cox (presented at Houghton Hall), Adam Henein - realizing his monumental “Al Safina” (The Ship) at the entrance of Martha’s - the Arab Museum of Modern Art in Qatar. Other artists include Gisela Colon, Jwan Yosef, Sultan Al Qassimi, Recycle Group, Louis Barthélemy, and Pilar Zeta, among others.
Photographs: Pilar-Zeta ©Christophe Cöenon
