The Menier’s in Paris !!!

Posted in Europe, France, Paris

This one was a while back, and glad to have found pictures in my cd rom vault that should be in my blog for you and me, A wonderful favorite area of my eternal Paris as many ,,,the nostalgic park of my early trotter in Paris.  This one needs advance reservation but worth the detour, me think ,Therefore, here is my take on the Menier’s in Paris !!! Hope you enjoy the post as I.

The Hôtel Menier is a former private mansion located in the 8éme arrondissement of Paris, at 5 Avenue Van Dyck, next to Parc Monceau. It is served by metro line 2 at the Courcelles station. The mansion, built for the chocolate manufacturer Émile-Justin Menier, bears his name. The Hôtel Menier was constructed between 1869 and 1870 and inaugurated in 1874. In 1906, the mansion was inhabited by Count Joachim Charles Lepic and his wife, Andrée Charlotte Marguerite Whitcomb. Count Lepic died in 1908. His young widow survived him by nearly sixty years and died at the Hôtel Menier on October 26, 1966. As of 2021, the Hôtel Menier is a condominium. The magnificent Château de Chenonceau in the Loire Valley ,remains the property of the Menier family since 1913. Three other private mansions that once belonged to the sons of Emile-Justin Meunier can be seen nearby: the Hôtel Henri Menier, the Hôtel Gaston Menier, and the Hôtel Abraham de Camondo.

The three-story building, set perpendicular to Avenue Van-Dyck, comprises a main section whose eastern façade faces Parc Monceau (see posts), with a wing extending to the west. At the center of each façade rises a rotunda-shaped projecting section on which the Menier monogram, “M,” is sculpted. A winter garden, visible from Parc Monceau, is located at the corner of the building. In the main courtyard, a vaulted entrance leads to the covered courtyard of the former stables. The former private mansion is now divided into apartments, each undoubtedly having its own unique decor. It is not open to the public but can be clearly seen from Avenue Van Dyck and Parc Monceau.

According to his investigative notebooks, the writer Émile Zola drew inspiration from the Hôtel Menier to imagine the mansion in *La Curée*, a novel published in 1871. The Hôtel Menier also served as a model for Philippe Hériat’s novel *La Famille Boussardel* (1944).

The Menier family owned the world’s largest chocolate factory in the 19C. Head towards the edge of Parc Monceau (see posts) for a guided historical tour to discover the family’s beautiful and opulent residences from the outside, as well as a hidden gem: the home of Gaston Menier, the patriarch’s grandson. There you’ll find Paris’s most secluded museum, the Museum of Pharmacy.(see pic). The highlight is the remarkable inner courtyard, with its unique Norman-Moorish style, the only one of its kind in the city, featuring half-timbering and oriental decorations. A reminder of Gaston’s love of the theater, a monumental black wooden staircase adorned with superb gold mosaics depicting the gods of Olympus awaits! It is also here that the mysterious little museum is hidden, housing the headquarters of the National Order of Pharmacists since 1953. A nod to history, since the founder of the Menier dynasty himself manufactured medicines, and even health chocolates! The Pharmacy Museum is located at 4 and 6 Avenue Ruysdaël, very close to Parc Monceau, in the 8éme arrondissement.  The National Order of Pharmacists! Accessible free of charge by appointment,svp ; the museum boasts exceptional collections of objects used in the preparation of medicines, ingredients more surprising than the next, vases, and pharmacopoeias from the 16C to the 20C. Opened in 2010, the Pharmacy Museum presents several thousand pieces, some of which are almost five centuries old.

The official Arts and pharma heritage site on the Musée de la Pharmacie : https://www.artetpatrimoinepharmaceutique.fr/ws/web/app/collection/expo/11

The Paris tourist office on free admission museums not mention this one but same : https://parisjetaime.com/article/les-musees-et-monuments-gratuits-a-paris-a961

There you go folks, a great park on a wonderful beautiful area of Paris, and you would do well to visit it. Hope you enjoy a tranquil time amongst beautiful buildings and a nice mansion with an intriguing little museum. Again, hope you enjoy this post on the Menier’s in Paris !!! as I.

And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!

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Published by pedmar10

I am a lover of travels to Europe , Americas , Africa and Asia as well ,who like to share my experiences of the last 53 years with the world, visiting so far 81 countries; living in 6, working in 5, and Citizen of 4, speaking fluently 4 languages. I can deal with sports especially football/soccer and love music, arts, wine collector/drinker, and go out to restaurants, and just visit the world. My background comes all the way from Candelaria and Pajara in Tenerife, Spain where my grandparents came from ;not knowing each other then, to Punta Brava, west of Havana, Cuba. There , my parents born in Cuba met and later on I was born there too. 100% guanche (annexed Tenerife to Spain on April 10 ,1496). I left Cuba as many have to Madrid, Spain where I lived for 4 years. Then, move to Perth Amboy ,New Jersey USA (living there 13 yrs) ; where I completed high school, became a US Citizen, learned to drive a car, and learned English. Afterward, went to the university in Florida, ERAU, and upon graduation decided to moved there to Ormond by the Sea, near Daytona Beach, finally moving North Miami, then Hialeah, then another moved to Silver Lakes division in Miramar, Broward county, Florida; in Florida I lived a total of 18 years. Finally , moved to France in 2003 ,Versailles call me for its royalty, and working in Paris was great. It was time to seek frontiers again and moved to Brech near Auray, Morbihan in Brittany , and later move to not too far Pluvigner. Total so far in France has been 20 years, and counting. Moving average a home every 5.5 years hopefully this will be my last. Cheers All rights reserved. No part of this blog may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means or stored in a retrieval system of any nature, without the written permission of the copyright holder, me. No part of this work may be modified, without the written permission of the holder, me.No part of this work may be exposed to public view in any form or by any means, without identifying the holder as the author, and with the before mentioned permission.

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