Thursday morning at the Louvre, Part I or Ou est l'epée de Charlemagne?

For those just joining my France travelogue in progress, you might want to start by reading previous posts which can be found here.

In planning for this trip I amassed a long list of sites that I had to see and others that I would like to see if time permitted.

I knew that the Louvre museum was open late on Wednesday nights. I thought it unlikely, but possible that we could have visited the Louvre then.

HA!

There was no way we had any energy left after our walking tour, visiting the Cluny, and the Crypte archéologique to squeeze in another major sight-seeing venue like the Louvre. So on Thursday morning we set out to visit what is probably the world's most famous museum.

Earlier in the week we had walked down Rue de Rivoli on our way to see the Tuileries gardens and discovered a fashion district. We struck teenagers, multiple shoe stores, as well as heavy traffic. We decided to avoid that street and instead took the road that paralleled the Seine. The shops on that street tended to be filled with pets and plants. If you want a puppy, kitten or begonia in Paris, go stroll there.

The Louvre itself has a fascinating history that dates back to the twelfth century and Philipe Auguste who built the walls surrounding Paris. It was a fortress designed to protect the city.

Over the years it evolved to being a palace and is now an art musuem.

We entered the courtyard or Cour Carrée and were impressed at its size and grandeur. See if you do not imagine armies being staged on the flagstones.


Of the many classical images and statues gracing the side of the Louvre, my favorite is the goddess of wisdom and victory, Athena.

I tried getting a picture of Athena whenever I saw her in France and she rivals Joan of Arc in popularity, at least by the number of statues I saw.

Before we made our way into the main entrance our eyes spied something that reminded us of home.

Being fans of Stephen Colbert, we had to preserve this memory.


Then we entered the belly of the beast and began navigating our way through the vast holdings. I went to the information desk and asked, "Ou est l'epée de Charlemagne?" and was directed to the first floor of the Richelieu wing.

There we found Joyeuse, the sword associated with Charlemagne, but this artifact was created long after his death.

I do not know if the whereabouts of the real sword used by Charles the Great is even known, but it was still worthwhile seeing something made to honor his memory.

Here is the impressive hilt


and the jewel encrusted scabbard.

It might not be an enchanted blade like the legendary swords of Excalibur, Durindana or Balisarda, but I am sure a sword such as this would have been coveted and the source of endless duels if anyone ever dared to wield it.

The Medieval Objets d'art also contains a statuette that is considered to be either Charles the Great or his grandson Charles the Bald.


And side view.

Either way, I like the ruler on horseback.

One thing that the museum contains that they distinctly attribute to Charles the Bald is this sacramental plate.

As I listened to its description in my headphones I almost burst out laughing when I heard that the plate was made of serpentine.

Serpentine while a beautiful green stone can contain asbestos. Just as the Romans used lead pipes for plumbing without knowing the health hazards, so apparently did the Carolingians use a potential source of asbestos without knowing its potential hazardous nature.

Then again, as long as it does not flake off, I am sure the host would probably be fine just touching the serpentine surface. However, I would not advise churches going out today and procuring serpentine for such uses.

In a neighboring room was a reliquary associated with Charlemagne. It reportedly contains one of his arms.

I saw a lot of reliquaries in France. The idea that saints were dismembered and then had body parts sold and sent all over Europe is something that I as a modern twenty-first century woman find creepy.

I would much rather have saints buried whole and in one place than have their bodies carved up and dispersed like dandelion seeds in the wind. I tried visiting the tomb of Saint Namphaise, but was thwarted by electrical problems at the church. I like the idea of going to one tomb to pay respects to someone rather than having their soul and/or essence chopped up into tiny bits. The idea of praying to an arm, finger, jawbone, et cetera of a holy person is not something that makes me feel comfortable. Instead it feels sacrilegious to do that to someone's body.

I think it is ironic that Charlemagne himself was treated in this manner after he was made a saint since during his reign he donated many reliquaries to churches. Toulouse reportedly had received many such gifts from him, but they no longer know which if any of their remaining reliquaries came from him.

These holy relics from saints helped spur tourism in the form of pilgrimages to the various basilicas. That was part of the medieval economy.

Here is another reliquary in the Louvre claiming to contain a piece of the true cross.


Here is it close up. Whether or not this reliquary contains a true religious artifact or simply a sliver of wood, the intricate and elaborate detail in the piece shows how much the idea of the true cross was worth.



Another religious artifact is the cover for holy writings. I have a hard time imagining that a work with such splendor would ever be used except for ceremonial purposes on rare occasions.

And up close.


From ninth century Metz comes this amazing casket carved from ivory. I love things like this.

Here is another view.

And what survey of the Medieval period would be complete without a good violent scene?

That is about all the pictures I can fit into this post. Next time I revisit this subject I will show pictures of Islamic art in the Louvre as well as other art that we saw since "we were there."

Linda

Wednesday afternoon in Paris, Part II - The Crypte Archaelogique

Once again, I am trying to pick up from where I left off on my travels through France. For those new to this blog, previous posts can be found here.

After spending our morning on a walking tour, a leisurely lunch on Rue Mouffetard and then in the afternoon spending a few hours at the Cluny we were tired. Our feet and legs were sore and I was in desperate need of an afternoon nap.

Except, I had more on my agenda to cover that day.

The Crypte archéologique is underneath the large courtyard in front of Notre Dame Cathedral, so it was also in front of Hôtel Dieu the cool historical place we were staying. It was also nearing 4 pm and we needed to go there before closing.

The name fits the place because it is an archaeological site. Ancient Paris or Lutecia can be seen in the stones uncovered here.

I tried my best to pay attention to what things were when we took pictures, but I will admit that due to our exhaustion we looked around at ancient stone work but we did not take good notes.

The maps and the maquettes are easier to explain. Although I should warn anyone planning on visiting Paris that those were part of a special exhibit that I think only lasts until May 2008.

I was particularly interested in these exhibits since it is what historians think Paris looked like at various times in history.

Here is a relief map of the swampy, marshy land mass that was once Lutecia.


Here is a map of the Roman settlement of Lutecia. There is not a lot shown on this map, but you can see the forum, the théâtre, and the citadel (although that is not marked.)


Here is a maquette of Roman Lutecia and you can see that it was a thriving city.


The Romans for all their efforts building this great city did not create much in regards to defense. The most was some ramparts on the island, but not on the left bank which from the above maquette shows was populated. Here is a map of the Roman defensive walls on the island and its proximity to the Palais.

Here is the description they gave of the remnants of the ramparts.


Here are the vestiges of the ramparts that remain.

Because there was not much to protect the city of Paris, it was plundered repeatedly by the Vikings in the ninth century. The left bank suffered tremendously.

Centuries later, Paris was protected from invading armies when Philippe Auguste had a large wall built surrounding the city whose length was about 5,200 meters and enclosed nearly 250 hectares. (According to Jean-Denis G.G. Lepage's The Fortifications of Paris.)

Here is a map of that great wall.


And the maquette showing how densely populated historians believe Paris was at that time.


Here is another maquette that shows the old Hôtel Dieu's location in proximity to Notre Dame. Part of it used to be on top of a bridge over the River Seine.



Compare that to an old wood cut that hangs in the current Hôtel Dieu. You can still see the building crossing the river.

There is also not much space between the buildings, little room for a plaza in front of Notre Dame.


Here's another view of the maquette and this time you can see medieval houses and how crowded they were.



Below is a cross section to see exactly where the Crypte and all its holdings are in relation to Notre Dame. Off on the left of the picture is the cathedral, at the bottom of the picture is where Hôtel Dieu is now situated, the top of the photo is the Seine River and the left bank.

If you squint you can see the statue of Charlemagne represented. (Hint look under the name Charlemagne!).



Ah yes, more ruins and Roman arches!


After finishing here, we needed to rest. Having an extravagant night out on the town was not something we had any energy for. Instead, we grabbed a sandwich baguette, a bottle of wine and we ate in our hotel room. We slept for a few hours and then...we got went out again.

You see, Notre Dame was having a multi-media show about the history of Paris that started every night at nine o'clock. I simply had to see it one night.

We sat in the hard chairs watching the slide show with English subtitles, hearing Gregorian chants and feeling warm air surround us.

Once the show passed the time of Philippe Auguste, I found my eyelids drooping more and more. It was the "I will just close my eyes for a few seconds" promise that made me realize that both of us would be far more comfortable just surrendering to sleep than continue to nod off while sitting upright.

Next time: the Louvre.