Every year during the weekend of European Heritage Days the doors of some of Paris’s most exclusive addresses open to the public. The only question is – Which monumental building to discover? This year we decided to visit the Luxembourg Palace, set in the bucolic Luxembourg Gardens and home to the French Senate.
This princely estate was built at the request of Marie de Medicis, with construction completed in 1630. After becoming home to a number of kings and queens, the palace became a prison. It wasn’t until the 1800s that the Luxumbourg Palace adopted a governmental role. In 1958 it became home to the Senate of the Fifth Republic.
Okay, enough about the history of Luxembourg Palace, ready for a tour of the centuries old interior chambers?
Office of the Vice President of the Senate, shown to the public for its patrimonial relevance. The current offices are are at 26 and 36 rue de Vaugirard.
Once called the Great Gallery, this is now the Library Annex. The first European painting museum was open to the public here from 1750 to 1780, and another museum for contemporary art from 1803 to 1815 and 1818 to 1886. The vaulted ceiling reveals a series of paintings by Jacob Jordaens representing the Twelve Signs of the Zodiac. Here too sits a bronze bust by American sculptor Jo Davidson of Literature Nobel Prize winner Anatole France, who once worked in the library.
The Victor Hugo Lounge owes its name to the bust sculpted by Antonin Mercié in 1889 of illustrious writer and Parliamentarian Victor Hugo who was a senator during the Third Republic.
The Conference Hall, a perfect example of Second Empire style, was designed by Alphonse de Gisors. Here sits a throne where Napoleon I once sat. Depictions of the history of France line the walls, along with eights tapestries from the Gobelins illustrating Ovid’s Metamorphoses. Senators now use this elegant 57 meters long room as a lounge in between meetings.
The Senate Chamber built from 1836 to 1841 is supported by eight stucco columns separated by seven statues of prestigious legislators. The 348 seats are allocated in proportion to the number of members in every political group with each senator having a designated seat.
View of the Luxembourg Gardens from the vast library where senators spend time reading and researching.
The Questeur’s Office where three Questeur’s manage the Senate’s administrative matters and run its budget.
Office of the President of the Senate, and thought to be the study of then First Consul Napoleon Bonaparte.
Monumental stairway by Boffrand featuring a stone balustrade, at the mansion used for offical receptions.
If you find yourself in Paris during European Heritage Days, take a tour for yourself! Now, where to next year…
