From Paris with Love: Carnavalet Museum

In the heart of Le Marais, the fashionable right bank district of Paris, the Carnavalet Museum occupies two 11th and 17th century mansions joined together. One mansion is the Hotel Carnavalet, where Madame de Sevigne once lived. Marie de Rabutin-Chantal, marquise de Sévigné (February 5, 1626– April 17, 1696) was a French aristocrat remembered for her letter-writing. Most of her letters, celebrated for their wit and vividness, were addressed to her daughter, whom Mme de Sévigné corresponded with for nearly thirty years. Mme de Sévigné sent the first of her famous letters on February 6, 1671, and their correspondence lasted until Mme de Sévigné's death. The address of the museum is 23, rue de Sevigne. The other mansion, Hotel Peletier de Saint-Fargeau, contains collections from the French Revolution days up to the present.

The museum is totally devoted to the history of Paris. Its reconstituted palace rooms, shop signs and Paris paintings make it a favorite destination of those who love Paris. And admission is free.

In the courtyard, a magnificent sculpture of Louis XIV, the Sun King, greets the visitor at the museum entrance. The bronze statue of Louis XIV, by Antoine Coyzevox, was formerly at the Hotel de Ville. The king is represented standing, wearing the Roman costume of a warrior. This statue was erected in the court of the Hotel de Ville on July 14, 1689, a century to the day before the storming of the Bastille.

Louis the XIV in the courtyard of the Musee Carnavalet

A closer view of “The Sun King”

The inscription on the base of the statue

At the garden entrance is the Arc de Nazareth. It is an architectural element salvaged during demolition work in the old quarters of Paris. It was a Renaissance structure from the Ile de la Cite, which now provides a doorway to the garden.

The entry gate to the garden at the Musee Carnavalet

The symbol of Paris, a ship upon the waves, is at the very center of the shield.

Inside the museum, the exhibits show the transformation of the village of Lutèce, which was inhabited by the Parisii tribes, to the grand city of today with a population of 2,152,423 (best guess).

The Carnavalet houses paintings, drawings, engravings and photographs, modern sculptures and pieces of furniture, thousands of ceramics, many decorations, models and reliefs, signs, thousands of coins, countless items, many of them souvenirs of famous characters, and thousands of archeological fragments. The period called Modern Time spans from the Renaissance until today and presents a vast number of images of the city. There are many views of the streets and monuments of Paris from the sixteenth to the twentieth century, but there are also many portraits of characters who played a role in the history of the capital, and works showing events which took place in Paris, especially the many revolutions which stirred the capital, as well as many scenes of the daily life in all the social classes. The art collection rivals that of many a museum, and paintings and artifacts related to the French Revolution constitute a complete gallery all by themselves.

The garden is a manicured marvel in a classical seventeenth century style. The boxwood parterres form pleasing, symmetrical patterns. Parterres don’t always have to have flowers, but those at Carnavalet not only have flowers in abundance, but the flowers are changed seasonally. I visited Carnavalet in the first part of October, just before the flowers were taken up in preparation for the “winter” garden. Isabelle, a resident gardener, had been digging up the existing garden and told me that new plantings would arrive on October 20. I checked back after October 20, but nothing new had been planted.

One continuous garden extends the length of the courtyard and half of its width.

A corner view of the full-length garden

A view of the full-length garden after the flowers between the boxwood hedges have been removed

A view of the full-length garden from the entry gate

On the other half of the garden are two “quadrants,” left and right

Parterres and flowers in the right quadrant

Another view of the right quadrant

A closer view of the parterres

A flowering border next to the right quadrant

The right quadrant after the flowers have been removed

The right quadrant, sans flowers, and Isabelle tending the bed of bordering flowers

The flower border

Meet Isabelle, a resident gardener at the Carnavalet Museum garden

The left quadrant garden with flowers

Becky sitting on a bench in the garden

Rose bushes bordering the garden

The inner courtyard, the courtyard of Victory, owes its name to the statue created in 1807 by Simon Boizot (1743-1809). The statue represents a winged Victory with upraised arms holding laurel wreaths made of bronze. The statue here is a copy of the original.