Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
TOP SIGHT
CITÉ DE L'ARCHITECTURE ET DU PATRIMOINE
In the eastern wing of Palais de Chaillot, directly across from the Eiffel Tower, is this
standout museum devoted to French architecture and heritage. The burgundy walls
and sky-lit rooms showcase 350 plaster casts taken from the country's greatest
monuments, a collection whose seeds were sown following the desecration of many
buildings during the French Revolution.
Some of the original details from which the casts were made, such as sculptures
from the Reims Cathedral, were later destroyed in the wars that followed. Although
not in situ, wandering through such a magnificent collection of church portals, gar-
goyles, and saints and sinners from around France is an incomparable experience for
anyone interested in the elemental stories that craftspeople chose to preserve in
stone.
On display on the upper floors are reproduced murals and stained-glass windows
from some of France's most important monuments, which are arranged in an in-
triguing labyrinthine layout. One of the most beautiful reproductions in this section is
the Cathédrale of St-Etienne cupola.
