Page 223 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Paris

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François-Mitterrand (see p244)
at Tolbiac, the Rue Richelieu
buildings still contain a huge
variety of items, includ ing
original manuscripts by Victor
Hugo and Marcel Proust. The
library also has the richest
collection of engravings and
photographs in the world.
Sadly, the 19th-century reading
room is not open to the public.
The library is under going
renovation until 2019, how ever
it is still open to the public.
The elegant Galerie Vivienne, one of Paris’s covered shopping arcades
0 Les Passages the French Stock Exchange e Avenue de
from 1826 to 1987. It earlier l’Opéra
75002. Map 6 F5. q Bourse.
housed the trading floor of
These 19th-century shopping the Palais de la Bourse. 75001 & 75002. Map 6 E5.
arcades are located between Today, the French stock q Opéra, Pyramides.
Boulevard Montmartre and Rue market is located at 29 Rue
St-Marc, and between Rue du Cambon (not open to visits). This broad avenue is a notable
Quatre Septembre and Rue des This building is now used as example of Baron Haussmann’s
Petits Champs. At the time of a conference centre. dramatic modernization of Paris
their construction, around the in the 1860s and 1870s (see
1820s and 1830s, the passages pp36–7), and is the city’s only
represented a traffic-free area w Bibliothèque tree-less avenue. Much of the
for commerce, workshops and Nationale Richelieu medieval city (including a
apartments. They targeted the mound from which Joan of Arc
new bourgeoisie with amenities 58 Rue de Richelieu and 5 Rue began her crusade against the
such as gas lighting, shelter Vivienne 75002. Map 6 F5. Tel 01 53 English) was cleared to make
from the rain and mud, eating 79 59 59. q Bourse. Open 10am– way for the wide thorough fares.
establishments and shopping 6pm Mon–Fri, 9am–5pm Sat. Closed The Avenue de l’Opéra, running
public hols, 2 weeks in Sep. 8 by
all under one roof. They were appt; 01 53 79 49 49. ∑ bnf.fr from the Palais-Royal to the
the models for the future grand Opéra National de Paris Garnier,
magasins, or department stores, The Bibliotheque Nationale was completed in 1876. The
but eventually fell into disuse. In (National Library) originated uniformity of the five-storey
the 1970s, they were revamped with the manuscript collections buildings that line it contrasts
and now house an eclectic of medieval kings, to which, with those found in nearby
mixture of small shops selling by law, a copy of every French streets, which date from the
anything from rare books to book printed since 1537 has 17th and 18th centuries. Nearby,
designer jewellery. They have been added. The collec tion, in Place Gaillon, is the bar and
high, vaulted roofs of iron and which includes two Gutenberg restaurant Drouant where the
glass. Many have seen better Bibles, is partially housed in Goncourt Prize for literature is
days, but one of the most this complex. Despite the decided. The avenue is domi-
fashionable and high-end is the removal of the printed books, nated by travel and luxury
Galerie Vivienne (off Rue Vivienne periodi cals and CD-Roms to shops. The Institut d’Etudes
and Rue des Petits Champs), with the Biblio thèque Nationale Supérieures des Arts is at No. 5.
its designer boutiques, mosaic
floor, excellent tearoom and
Legrand Filles et Fils, one of the
best wine caves (cellars) in Paris.

q Palais Brongniart
(Bourse des Valeurs) 4 Pl de la Bourse
75002. Map 6 F5. q Bourse.
Closed to the public.
∑ palaisbrongniart.com
This Neo-Classical temple of
commerce was commis sioned
by Napoleon and was home to Avenue de l’Opéra

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