Pont au Change description and photos - France: Paris (Topic)

Pont au Change description and photos - France: Paris. Detailed information about the attraction. Description, photographs and a map showing the nearest significant objects. The title in English is Pont au Change.

Photo and description

The Chatelet Bridge, which connects the Ile de la Cite with the right bank of the Seine near Chatelet, has a rich history, like everything in Paris.

At first, it was replaced by a wooden crossing, built in the 9th century. It led directly to the royal palace on the island. The bridge, as was usually done in those days, was so densely built up with houses of four or even five floors that it was impossible for passers-by to see even a piece of the Seine. There were 140 houses and 112 shops and workshops! The bridge got its name precisely because it was used for commodity and money exchange.

In the 14th century, the royal residence moved to the Louvre, and the road to Holy Mass in Notre Dame Cathedral began to pass through the Changed Bridge. Therefore, it was decorated with sculptures of French kings. Now these sculptures are in the Louvre.

The bridge burned once, collapsed more than once. This collapse is described in the novel "Perfume" by Patrick Suskind. The bridge also played a role in Victor Hugo's novel Les Miserables - it was from here that Inspector Javert rushed into the Seine. The bridge was painted by artists - for example, on the canvas by Robert Hubert "Demolition of houses on the Bridge of Changes" depicts a historic event for Paris. The viewer, as it were, stands with his back to the shore and sees tall white mountains of broken limestone from which houses were built, walls that have not yet been demolished, workers on dismantling, a horse with a cart waiting for the load. Everything was so - all buildings were demolished in 1786 under Louis XVI. One can imagine how naked the bridge seemed to the townspeople without shops and houses!

The bridge acquired its modern appearance in the 19th century, when the so-called "ottomanization" of Paris began. In 1858, during the reign of Napoleon III, the old wooden structures were removed and in two years a double of the Saint-Michel bridge opposite was built. The three-arched stone bridge, 103 meters long, is decorated with imperial symbols, but, of course, it does not look as picturesque as the old one, lined with houses. But it has become modern and safe.

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Topic: Pont au Change description and photos - France: Paris.