Man cannot live by art alone, and so we did some window shopping, and stop at a very famous gelateria and general dessert shop called Berthillion which was across the bridge over the Seine from the cathedrals we were visiting. The nearby coffee stand under the sycamore tree which also offered hot wine!! could not compete with the ice cream parlor… In Paris you are allowed to eat your glace, before the main meal… The gendarmes were watching… and probably... Read more
There is a French website of sacred sites, that says, there are 14 must see cathedrals and churches in Paris. Well, we didn’t have time for 14, but we did go to see St. Sulpice, an ornate baroque cathedral with an organ touted as the best in Europe. Sadly we didn’t get to hear it, but we certainly enjoyed slowly walking through this remarkable cathedral. It was built in the 17th century, and more recently got notoriety for being a... Read more
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ll already know about the terrible fire that burned up much of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, 15th of April, 2019. The graphic images of the fire on every news report, including the horror of the Parisians who could only watch as the central tower collapsed, will long be imprinted on my mind. As Mr. Macron said, Notre Dame represents the very soul of France, and must be rebuilt at whatever cost. Here... Read more
There are not many Renoir paintings in this museum, but then there was a debate as to whether he should be grouped with the Impressionists anyway. But here are two of his more famous paintings… Another artist who is under-represented in Orsay is Paul Cezanne, which is a great pity as he was very skilled… Here’s a village scene Here is his self-portrait, looking a little peeved with himself. Here’s his painting entitled ‘The game of cards’... Read more
As I said earlier, Orsay is the go to place to see the Impressionists, so let’s dive in. The one rather well represented is Monet, and above is an interesting one of the lady with the parasol… and below, a lunch scene outside. Monet’s numerous paintings of the front of Rouen Cathedral in various lights, are certainly some of his most famous ones. As are the ones he painted at Giverny such as this one of the bridge over... Read more
Well let’s start with the sculptures in Orsay which are considerable. Orsay is a big modern building compared to where these works of art used to be housed. This is a statue of Eve, after she bit the apple, with regret written all over her face. The sculptor is Eugene Delaplanche. And another rendering of the same theme by the same artist. This is a statue of Virgil, the author of the Aeneid by Gabriel Thomas. As any good student... Read more
The go to museum for Impressionist lovers is Musee d’Orsay. Hands down. And it is a lot less swamped with tourists than the jam packed Louvre. So let’s consider what they have to show us…. but first, one has to have a stop at a proper Cafe and Sweet shop, namely La Duree. But first lets take a water taxi down the Seine, and see a few sites on the way. Orsay can wait until the next post. Look closely... Read more
One of the things I like least about the middle ages era of church history is phony relics— a rib from Peter or a bone from his foot (when in fact if Peter is anywhere he is buried intact on Vatican Hill under St. Peters today. All the earliest Christians were Jews, and they did not believe in magical relics. They did believe in miracles, which was a different matter. But here are some of the so-called apostolic relics. The... Read more
One museum I had never visited in Paris was Cluny, which was once a monastery satellite of the huge abbey of Cluny in the city of the same name. I had no idea there was so much Christian art in Cluny museum in Paris, but you are about to see what I mean. A little history is in order. Cluny, both the abbey and its monasteries was once the dominant Catholic religious force in France, run by the Benedictines. Here... Read more
There are churches with members, and then there are special chapels built as reliquaries, that is to house precious Christian relics. But that is not all in this case. This chapel in the heart of Paris is a tribute to King Louis IX, destined to become Saint Louis, he was so pious, and was raised by his mother to be that way. The supposed relics collected and housed in this chapel included the crown of thorns, and a piece of... Read more
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