Paris - The Panthéon - 4me

Plate XLIII - The Pantheon…

On the same day that I had climbed the 280 stairs of the Arc de Triomphe, I was again to get some more vigorous exercise on the stairs of the Panthéon. This time I did not count them but similarly, the views over Paris from the dome are a worthwhile reward.

Construction of the Jacques-Germain Soufflot designed Church of Ste Geneviève (patron Saint of Paris) began at the end of the 1750’s, replacing an older church on the site. It was built to fulfil a vow made by King Louis XV after his recovery from an illness in 1744. Deconsecrated during the Révolution it was renamed the Panthéon (from the Greek word meaning every god) and dedicated as a memorial to all great Frenchmen. The building, in the Neoclassical style, is cruciform in outline and is covered with an imposing domed roof, visible across the city.

The interior is magnificently decorated with fresco paintings and mosaics depicting scenes from French history. Externally the building is distinguished by columns surmounted by pediments housing Pierre-Jean David d'Angers statues of many post-revolutionary heroes. Twice re and deconsecrated the now state owned Panthéon is again a mausoleum and memorial to the heroes of France, many of whom are interred within the vast crypt necropolis below the former church’s nave. These include Voltaire (whose brain is said to be housed in the Comédie Française), Jean Jacques Rousseau, Victor Hugo, Louis Pasteur, Emile Zola, Louis Braille, Pierre and Marie Curie, and notably - reinterred here in 2002, 132 years after his death - Alexandre Dumas.

AUX GRANDS HOMMES LA PATRIE RECONNAISSANTE.

Paris - Place des Vosges - 4me

Plate XXXIX - Place des Vosges…

One of the guide books I consulted recommended this area for the quaint shops in the vicinity of the Place des Vosges, and especially for Jewish delicacies. I must confess I never saw them, but then maybe quaint is in the eye of the beholder, or maybe it’s just that I’m not Jewish – or both.

With steeply pitched roofs of blue slate and walls of sandstone quoined red brick, the buildings surrounding the square (and unusually, it really is a square - reputedly the oldest in the city) provide a shaded walk along the vaulted arcades. It is a beautiful place, with open lawns and shade giving linden trees.

Madame de Sevigné (the legendary Parisian beauty and letter writer) was born here. Victor Hugo lived here. Over the years so too did Cardinal Richelieu, Duc de Sully, Marion Delorme and Georges Dufrénoy.

Originally known as the Place Royale - even though no royal ever took up residence – the building pictured here is known as the Pavillon de la Reine. The département of the Vosges, a region of eastern France noted for its granite and red sandstone formed mountains was the first to contribute taxes to the Revolutionary army campaigns, and it is for Vosges this former royal square now remains named. The present buildings, each house front identical, date from 1612 and replaced the Hôtel des Tournelles, demolished by Catherine de Medicis during her reign. The public may still visit the former home of Victor Hugo, best known for his works The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and Les Miserables.

And who knows, maybe there also is a quaint gefilte fish and chop-liver bagel shop somewhere around here?

Paris - Comédie-Française - 1er

Plate XX– Palais Royal Gardens, Comedie Francaise…

My love of Paris (and most things French) is all Miss Cook’s fault. Miss Cook was my first French language teacher and to learn the French language she contended, one needed an appreciation also of French arts and culture. One of the characters who fired my imagination as a young student was Sarah Bernhardt - the Divine Sarah. Who could fail to be captivated by a woman who played Hamlet, was legendary for her performances as Marguérite Gautier in La Dame Aux Camélias, who continued to perform after the amputation of a leg and reputedly counted both Victor Hugo and England’s Edward VII (then Prince of Wales) among her many famous lovers. Sarah Bernhardt started her career at the Comédie-Française in 1862, although she was soon fired for slapping the face of a senior member of the company - then, due to her sheer talent, was later recalled. My kind of girl!

Of course, I couldn’t see Sarah (unless you count my visit to Père Lachaise cemetery), but I could get to the theatrical home (properly called the Salle Richelieu) of the Comédie, which is adjacent to the Palais Royal buildings. At the time of my visit the theatre (like the Opéra Garnier, the Grand Palais and even Notre Dame Cathedral) was undergoing restoration work, something the visitor to Europe soon learns to live with and appreciate*. A kindly workman did however allow me access into the lavishly decorated auditorium (who says the Parisians are unfriendly?!). Often associated with Molière, who died before the advent of the Comédie the theatre is one of three homes used by the acting troupe today constituting the Comédie-Française. It is also home to the brain of Voltaire (François-Marie Arouet).

* … I have given some thought to a book of my many photographs of European buildings under maintenance, reconstruction, renovation, cleaning or repair, to be called ‘It’ll be Nice When It’s Finshed’. The only problem is … I don’t think it ever will be!!