France
Recent Articles
The Luxor Obelisk
The gilded diagrams on the pedestal of the Luxor Obelisk tell a different story from the hieroglyphs carved into the ancient stone above them. They record the nineteenth-century engineering required to move the monument from Egypt and raise it in the center of Paris. The obelisk originally stood at the entrance to Luxor Temple. In […]
Les Invalides
The gilded dome of Les Invalides rises above a complex founded to care for soldiers. In 1670, Louis XIV established the Hôtel Royal des Invalides as a home for veterans whose injuries, illness, or age had left them in need of support. Its monumental architecture gave a prominent place in the capital to men who […]
A Royal Sanctuary for Sacred Relics
Within the medieval royal palace on the Île de la Cité, Sainte-Chapelle served a purpose that was both religious and royal. Louis IX commissioned it to house objects venerated as relics of Christ’s Passion, creating a sanctuary that placed these treasures at the heart of the French monarchy. In 1239, Louis acquired the Crown of […]
Sailboats of the Tuileries
At the edge of a basin in the Tuileries Garden, children launch small wooden sailboats and watch the wind carry them across the water. A long stick helps push a boat away from the stone rim or send it off again when it returns. This simple activity has been part of the garden’s life for […]
Pont Neuf
Despite its name, which means “New Bridge”, the Pont Neuf is the oldest surviving bridge in Paris. Crossing the Seine in two sections at the western end of the Île de la Cité, it connects the island with both riverbanks. Its construction introduced a different way of moving through, and looking at, the city. Henri […]
Petit Palais
A sweeping staircase, monumental stone arch, and elaborate gilded gate mark the entrance to the Petit Palais. Designed by architect Charles Girault for the Paris Universal Exposition of 1900, the building made architecture and craftsmanship part of the exhibition itself. Girault also designed the entrance gate. Its curling metalwork and intricate ornament fill the archway […]
Flame of Liberty
Near the Pont de l’Alma in Paris, a golden flame rises above a dark pedestal. Its form reproduces, at full size, the flame carried by the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor. Installed in 1989, the Flame of Liberty was intended to celebrate friendship between France and the United States. Within a decade, it […]
Musée Picasso
In the Marais district of Paris, the Musée national Picasso-Paris occupies a mansion whose history began more than three centuries before it became a museum. Known as the Hôtel Salé, the building brings together the legacy of a seventeenth-century fortune and the work of one of the twentieth century’s most influential artists. The mansion was […]
The Church at Auvers-sur-Oise
Erin stands outside the church at Auvers-sur-Oise, beside a reproduction of the painting Vincent van Gogh made of it in 1890. The building and its painted interpretation share the same setting, offering an opportunity to compare the place with the artist’s vision. Van Gogh painted the church in June 1890, shortly after settling in the […]
Auberge Ravoux
During our family vacation in France, we ate a meal at Auberge Ravoux in Auvers-sur-Oise, the inn where Vincent van Gogh spent the final months of his life. Sharing a meal there gave us a simple connection to the building’s history: it had once provided the artist with both food and a place to stay. […]
A Family Tradition of Bookstores
Visiting bookstores has long been part of how our family travels. Wherever we go, we enjoy making time to browse the shelves and discover a place through its books. In Paris, that tradition brought us to Shakespeare and Company. Both of our daughters are pictured at Shakespeare and Company: one outside among the books displayed […]
The Moulin Rouge and Its Red Windmill
Above the entrance to the Moulin Rouge, a red windmill announces one of Paris’s most famous places of entertainment. Its name means “Red Mill”, and the windmill has been part of its identity since the cabaret opened on October 6, 1889, at the foot of Montmartre. Founded by Joseph Oller and Charles Zidler, the Moulin […]
