Stone head of a bearded man with wavy hair and closed eyes, a fragment of medieval sculpture against a brown background.

Faith · Art · Museums · Paris

Recently Found Medieval Sculpture from Notre-Dame at the Musée de Cluny

Head of Christ with closed eyes, 1230s. From the section of recently discovered medieval sculpture from Notre-Dame at the Musée de Cluny

Reverse of an old wooden panel with butterfly-shaped inserts, strips of canvas and a fragment of an old French paper label.

Art · Museums · Heritage · Paris

Annual inspection of the Mona Lisa by conservation specialists

The Louvre Shows the Reverse of the Mona Lisa. during the annual examination of the Mona Lisa to check its condition by the specialists responsible for the conservation of this masterpiece

Faith · Monarchies · Society · Paris

In 2021 Emmanuel Macron changed the shade of blue on the national flag, explaining that he wished to return to the state the symbol of the French Revolution, which raised this banner

In 2021 Emmanuel Macron changed the shade of blue on the national flag, explaining that he wished to return to the state the symbol of the French Revolution, which raised this banner. Yet each of the colours taken separately carries anything but revolutionary connotations. Red goes back to the Capetian

Archive · Observations · Paris

The Farewell of the French Cuirassiers Leaving Paris in 1914

The end of the age of chivalry

Black-and-white photograph of a woman and a small girl holding hands beside a wrought-iron railing, with trees behind.

Archive · Books · Paris · People

Marina Tsvetaeva on France and a photograph of the poet in Paris

In some respects of history we (France and Russia) coincide; more than that: there are sides of history that we feel upon our own sides. Marina Tsvetaeva on France. In the photograph: Tsvetaeva in Paris

Black-and-white photograph of a grey-haired man with a cigarette in his mouth, leaning on a railing above a street with a lorry and a car.

Books · Paris

Photographic portrait of French poet and playwright Jacques Prévert on a city street

The best way not to move forward is to follow one constant idea. The French poet and dramatist Jacques Prévert

Black-and-white group photograph of nine men seated in two rows on a step by a window.

NB! · Archive · Art · Paris · Humour

Man Ray, Éluard, Dalí, Breton and Crevel change places in a photograph of the Surrealists

The Surrealists have changed seats. Man Ray has moved to Paul Éluard's place, Paul Éluard to Dalí's, Dalí to André Breton's, André Breton to René Crevel's, and René Crevel to Man Ray's. Tristan Tzara, Jean Arp, Yves Tanguy and Max

Archive · Art · Books · Paris

Surrealists and the Dadaists Who Joined Them, from Tzara to Man Ray

Surrealists in Paris in 1933: Tristan Tzara, Paul Éluard, André Breton, Jean Arp, Salvador Dalí, Yves Tanguy, Max Ernst, René Crevel and Man Ray. Tristan Tzara was a poet and a founder of Dadaism. In early 1930, together with Francis Ponge and Paul Nougé, he supported the first issue of

NB! · Archive · Art · Paris · People

Gustave Caillebotte walks his dog in Paris in 1892

Art · Museums · Observations · Paris · Pop Culture

Advertisement with Poussin's painting from the Louvre and its subject of death in Arcadia

Nicolas Poussin's "The Shepherds of Arcadia" (1637–38) in an advertisement for Lolita Lempicka's men's fragrance. The first thought on seeing this dreadful advertisement: did the collaboration bring the Louvre, which houses Poussin's immortal canvas, enough money to acquire for

Black and white photograph of a spotted dog on a window balcony beside a birdcage, with a lace curtain showing a female figure.

Archive · Art · Paris

André Kertész photographed a concierge's dog in Paris in 1926

Good Morning! Photograph by André Kertész, The Concierge's Dog, 1926, Paris

Cinema · Monarchies · Museums · Observations · Paris · Humour

The helmet with Henry VIII's deranged expression that I saw recently in the Louvre has always reminded me of the mask worn by the dreadfully dangerous criminal Albert van den Bosch in the film "Taxi 4"

But in fact this helmet, which I wrote about briefly in my book, is the sole surviving piece of the armour presented by the Emperor Maximilian I as a diplomatic gift to the English king Henry VIII in 1514. I trust no one will dispute that the old man would