I have written before on many things in Paris and sometimes I found me new things not yet in my blog that should be, This is the case lately of finding old paper pictures in my vault ,I know quality is not the best but its all I got and should be in my blog. I have written on many places of Paris ; this is another nice one to see on the off the beaten path trails of my Paris ; worth the detour, me think, Therefore, here is my take on the Place Saint Sulpice of Paris !!! Hope you enjoy the post as I.
The Place Saint-Sulpice is located in the quartier Odéon of the 6éme arrondissement of Paris. The square is roughly rectangular shape, 105 meters long by 80 meters wide and occupied in its center by the Saint-Sulpice fountain. It is bordered by the Saint-Sulpice Church and the rue Bonaparte, the rue du Vieux-Colombier corner,of the rue Canettes and rue Saint-Sulpice , and the rue Henry-de-Jouvenel and rue Palatiner. The square is essentially pedestrian, except on its perimeters. The area is served by metro line 4 of Saint-Sulpice and by line 10 of Mabillon.
Built from 1843 to 1848, the Saint-Sulpice fountain , sometimes called fontaine des orateurs sacrés or sacre speakers and was also mischievously called Fountain of the four cardinals because it is decorated with four statues of Catholic bishops, famous preachers from the time of Louis XIV, but who have never been named Cardinals. However, the faces of the fountain are roughly aligned on the cardinal points. The four bishops are Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet, bishop of Meaux, north face; François de Salignac de la Mothe-Fénelon dit Fénelon, Archbishop of Cambrai, East face; Esprit Fléchier, bishop of Lavaur and Nîmes, west face; and Jean-Baptiste Massillon, bishop of Clermont-Ferrand, southern face.
Some interesting sights around here that I like are the Saint Sulpice Church; City/Town hall of the 6éme arrondissement, located on the other side of the square compared to the church, at 78, rue Bonaparte. At No 6: Maison de Servandoni, Couturier Karl Lagerfeld was a tenant of a 390 m2 apartment with his Mother, then with the Dandy Jacques de Bascher, until 1983. The Couturier Paco Rabanne remained there in an apartment under the attic, At no 8: Café de la Mairie; the writer Georges Perec settled there in October 1974, for three days, to write Tentative d’épuisement d’un lieu parisien or tentative attempt to exhaust a Parisian place. Of the three establishments frequented by the writer, it is the only one who remaining. In 1990, the café de la Mairie served as a setting for the film La Discrète, directed by Christian Vincent , At no 9: former Saint-Sulpice seminar, annex to the Ministry of Finance built in the 1820s At no 10: at this address lived the engraver Achille Désiré Lefèvre ,A scene from the film Paris nous appartient or Paris belongs to us ( 1961) by Jacques Rivette is shot on Place Saint-Sulpice.
A bit of history tell us that during the construction of the current facade of the Saint-Sulpice Church in the 18C, the creation of a monumental place in a semicircle, this project is not carried out but a space prolonging the forecourt is started in 1757 . In 1767, a loan is subscribed by the city after authorization of the king to undertake the expropriations and the development work ,The square is partly set up on the site of the old Saint-Sulpice seminar, built in the 17C, and demolished in 1808.
The Paris tourist office on the Church Saint Sulpice: https://parisjetaime.com/eng/culture/eglise-saint-sulpice-p1572
The Paris tourist office on the quartier or neighborhood of Odéon: https://parisjetaime.com/eng/transport/quartier-de-l-odeon-p1993
There you go folks, this is a wonderful area for sightseeing and walks in a popular area of my eternal Paris , for all to see, and visit while in Paris. The square is very nice indeed. Again,hope you enjoy this post on the Place Saint Sulpice of Paris as I
And remember ,happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 