NB! · Architecture · Heritage · Paris

The Luxor Obelisk and the Arc de Triomphe at opposite ends of the Champs-Élysées

The Luxor Obelisk and the Arc de Triomphe at opposite ends of the Champs-Élysées. In 1830 the obelisk was presented to France by Muhammad Ali, Viceroy of Egypt

NB! · Art · Museums · Observations · Paris

Sharing with you a rare chance to see the Mona Lisa without a crowd of tourists around her

Architecture · Monarchies · Museums · Paris

Marie Antoinette's bedroom at Versailles is being refurnished with authentic pieces only

Looking at the poverty of the furnishings, it is hard to believe that this photograph shows the bedchamber of Marie Antoinette's private apartments on the ground floor of Versailles, overlooking the Marble Court. But it really is. The museum staff have decided to fill the room with authentic

NB! · Archive · Monarchies · Paris

The History of the French Kings in a Single Picture

Faith · Art · Museums · Observations · Paris

One fine cruise morning I am reading, in the ship's saloon, the latest issue of the Louvre's magazine Grande Galerie, whose cover shows a splendid detail from the portrait of one of the greatest mystics of the Church, Saint Bonaventure, by the Spanish pai

One fine cruise morning I am reading, in the ship's saloon, the latest issue of the Louvre's magazine Grande Galerie, whose cover shows a splendid detail from the portrait of one of the greatest mystics of the Church, Saint Bonaventure, by the Spanish painter Zurbarán, from

Archive · Paris · People · Pop Culture

Satie, Debussy and Stravinsky at a dinner in Debussy's apartment in June 1910

A Party at Debussy's House. These photographs show three composers who did much to shape the face of music at the beginning of the twentieth century: Erik Satie, Claude Debussy and Igor Stravinsky. The first photograph was taken by Stravinsky, the second by Satie. Stravinsky sits in the

Four figures in long black hooded cloaks on an album page captioned Première entrée des fantosmes.

NB! · Art · Museums · Observations · Paris · Humour

Four ghosts in the first entrance of a 1632 ballet, drawn by Daniel Rabel

In my opinion, this is perfect. Four ghosts in the first entrée. A drawing by Daniel Rabel for a ballet of 1632. Collection of the Louvre. Positively the brides of the Nazgûl

NB! · Archive · Paris

Paris, the Champs-Élysées, 1900

Architecture · Science · Paris

Eugène Hénard's Palace of Electricity at the 1900 Paris World's Fair

The heart of the 1900 Exposition Universelle in Paris was the magnificent Palace of Electricity, designed by Eugène Hénard: behind its elegant 130-metre façade lay a vast power station supplying energy to all the pavilions of the exhibition. The façade, 70 metres high, was crowned by a chariot bearing

Coming Up · Art · Paris · Pop Culture

Christie's in full swing preparing the sale of Hubert de Givenchy's impressive collection, estimated at 50 million euros

Christie's is in full swing preparing the sale of the impressive collection of the couturier Hubert de Givenchy, estimated at 50 million euros. The exhibition is being held in two Parisian salons connected with Givenchy's life and on the premises of Christie's. The auction

NB! · Art · Society · Paris · Humour

The bottom of the allegory of Abundance from the sculptural group Triumph of the Republic (1879–99) by the Louvre curator Jules Dalou is plastered with leaflets of Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of the alliance of France's left-wing forces, who has thus expre

NB! · Archive · Art · Museums · Heritage · Paris