All roads lead to Roman Paris
Following in Roman footsteps in modern-day Paris
Deanna MacDonald
Montreal Gazette - October 20, 2007
Imagine a prosperous city of about 8000 people built on a small hill next to a wide, powerful river, surrounded by forests and marshes. The streets follow a typical Roman grid-plan with a forum, baths and amphitheatre and, yes, those are togas you see on the streets. Sound familiar? Probably not, but if you have ever strolled along the boulevard Saint Germain or rue de la Sorbonne, you have walked these same streets, only about 1800 years later. The city is Lutetia (‘Lutèce’ in French), which from the 1st to the 5th century was a centre of Roman Gaul, though today it is better known by the name given to it by Emperor Julien in the 4th-century: Paris.
With Paris’ many centuries of attractions - Notre-Dame, the Louvre, the Eiffel Tower, etc - it is easy to miss the ancient city that lies for the most part under Parisians’ well-shod feet. But long before Paris was Paris, it was a thriving Roman city. And while Rome itself may not have been built in a day, Roman Paris can be explored in a day of walking on the Left Bank in the 5th arrondissement and in the Ile de la Cité. I recently spent a day looking for what I could find of this long gone metropolis in what is now one of the most touristed areas in Paris. But with an eye (and a guidebook) to the ancient past, I could begin to sense the Roman heart that beat under the souvenir shops and traffic jams of the Latin Quarter.
I began my tour in a leafy park called the “Arènes de Lutèce” that was filled with grey-haired men playing pétanque, kids playing football and young couples canoodling on benches, most of them seemingly oblivious to the fact that they were in what was once the second largest amphitheatre of Roman Gaul. Built in the 2nd century on the slope of Montagne Ste-Genevière, it sat 10,000 and hosted circuses and theatre. But by the 4th- century, as Rome’s power declined, locals were using it as a quarry and over the centuries, it was forgotten and buried. It wasn’t until 1869 when workers dug up part of the structure while expanding rue Monge that Paris remembered its gladiatorial past. It was Victor Hugo who led a campaign to preserve the amphitheatre and today its circular walls are among the largest Roman ruins in the city.
From the amphitheatre it is a 10-minute walk to the very centre of Roman Paris, which is now the bustling university quarter around the Sorbonne. Rue St. Jacques (near rue Soufflot), a street lined with student cafes and bookshops, follows what was Lutetia’s ‘cardo maximus’ (the main north-south road in all Roman towns). A surprisingly non-descript apartment building (no. 172-4) marks the spot that was once the geographic centre of the Roman city, where the colossal Forum once stood (between today’s rues Malabranche, St. Jacques, Cujas and St. Michel). The Forum’s foundations are still there, but, like much of Lutetia, the remains are hidden underneath centuries old buildings and roads. However tantalizing bits have been left exposed; for instance, a piece of the Forum’s wall can be seen in the underground parking garage of 61 rue St. Michel and on the nearby Place de la Sorbonne, a Gallo-Roman well sits quite unnoticed by those sipping coffee and wine on numerous cafes terraces. From this square, it is a short stroll down the rue de la Sorbonne which lies atop the same route Lutetians once strolled from the Forum to what is now the most spectacular of all Paris’ ancient remains, the Cluny Baths.
Along busy rue St. Michel and rue St. Germain sit the stone and brick walls of the tepidarium (warm bath) and frigidarium (cold bath) and inside the extraordinary Cluny Museum visitors can see sculpted ancient gods and walk under soaring Roman vaults. Informative panels help give a sense of daily life in ancient Paris, which I discovered showed little sign of its future epicurean status: archaeologists have found that the primary diet consisted of mushy grains (i.e. gruel) and occasionally meat, including dog. I opted for a more modern Parisian lunch at the nearby, celebrated brasserie “Le Comptoir” which is nevertheless located within the confines of ancient Lutetia.
From the Cluny Baths, I walked along rue de la Harpe and rue St Severin following the route of a Roman road leading to the Ile de la Cité. Now lined with shops selling touristy trinkets and Greek gyros, this historic route originally lead to the only bridge across the Seine in Roman times, today replaced by the Petit Pont that leads to the iconic cathedral of Notre Dame. However long before Quasimodo was swinging from its belfry, Lutetians were worshiping the god Jupiter in a temple whose remains are lost under the medieval cathedral. But before the cathedrals’ façade the remains of Roman houses and quays uncovered during the construction of underground parking lot in the 1960s can be visited in an archaeological crypt and other ancient remnants are dotted around the tiny island.
Parisian lawyers and their clients can often be seen strategizing around the entrance gates of the nearby “Palais du Justice,” (the city Law Courts), which stand on the site of the late Roman Imperial Palace. Across the street is the rue de Lutèce. Here in 1906, archaeologists dug up Roman stele and building stones used in a late Roman basilica which are now in the Cluny Museum. The curving rue Chanoinesse and rue de la Colombe both follow the late Gallo-Roman wall that once protected the city from barbarian hoards. Its exact line is traced in the pavement before 5 rue de la Colombe. And on the eastern tip of the island, Square Jean XXIII offers views up the Seine towards Bercy. In this working class neighbourhood, which today holds the famous Cinémathèque Française housed in a Frank Gerhy building, archaeologists have discovered the remains of a Neolithic settlement of the Parisii, the Celtic tribe conquered by Julius Ceasar in 52BCE. The items discovered, including near complete riverboats, are now displayed in the Carnavalet Museum a short walk from the Ile de la Cité in the fashionable Marais district.
Housed in the 17th-century mansion that once belonged to Madame de Sevigne, the museum is the repository for the artefacts of the history of Paris. Along with Voltaire’s armchair and Marcel Proust’s bedroom, visitors can see scale models of Lutetia as well as items like 2nd century Romans glass goblets, mosaics and sculpted deities – including a figure of Isis found on rue St. Jacques in 1899.
There are traces of the Romans all over Paris: vestiges of Roman residences have been found in the Luxembourg Gardens; there are more baths near rue Gay Lussac, a theatre under Rue Racine, the Church of Val de Grace was once a Roman cemetery and the ruins of a temple to the god Mars have been uncovered in Montmartre. And more are found all the time. In May 2006, one of the earliest residential quarters of Lutetia dating to the 2nd-century was uncovered during construction of new buildings for the Pierre and Marie Currie University on rue St. Jacques; just another layer to the millefeuille of history that lies under modern Paris.
IF YOU GO
Musée national du Moyen Âge - Thermes et hôtel de Cluny: 6, place Paul Painlevé, 75005; www.musee-moyenage.fr.
Crypte archéologique du parvis de Notre-Dame de Paris: 1, place du Parvis de Notre-Dame, 75001; http://www.paris.fr/portail/Culture/Portal.lut?page_id=6468&document_type_id=5&document_id=19971&portlet_id=14628
Musée Carnavalet : 23, rue de Sévigné, 75004; www.carnavalet.paris.fr
For more on Roman Paris see: www.paris.culture.fr/en/.
For the latest archaeological finds in Paris see the website of INRAP (Institut national de recherches archéologiques preventives): www.inrap.fr/site/en/.
Where to Stay:
Hotel de Lutèce: 65 rue St Louis en I’Ile, 4th arr., tel: (+33) 01 43 26 23 52; www.paris-hotel-lutece.com. Doubles from €185. Cosy, historic hotel on Ile St Louis.
Hotel Lutetia: 45 Bd. Raspail, 6th arr., tel: (+33) 01 49 54 46 46; www.lutetia.paris.com. Doubles from €400. Luxurious, art deco hotel in the 6th arrondissement.
Where to eat:
Le Comptoir: 9 carrefour d’Odéon, 6th arr; tel: (+33) 01 44 27 07 97. Celebrated chef Yves Camdeborde’s casual, gourmet brasserie.
Moorish tearoom in the Mosque of Paris: 2, pl. du Puits-de-l’Ermite, 5th arr.; tel: (+33) 01 45 35 97 33. Not quite Roman but close to the amphitheatre and serving delicious Middle Eastern fare.
Deanna MacDonald
Montreal Gazette - October 20, 2007
Imagine a prosperous city of about 8000 people built on a small hill next to a wide, powerful river, surrounded by forests and marshes. The streets follow a typical Roman grid-plan with a forum, baths and amphitheatre and, yes, those are togas you see on the streets. Sound familiar? Probably not, but if you have ever strolled along the boulevard Saint Germain or rue de la Sorbonne, you have walked these same streets, only about 1800 years later. The city is Lutetia (‘Lutèce’ in French), which from the 1st to the 5th century was a centre of Roman Gaul, though today it is better known by the name given to it by Emperor Julien in the 4th-century: Paris.
With Paris’ many centuries of attractions - Notre-Dame, the Louvre, the Eiffel Tower, etc - it is easy to miss the ancient city that lies for the most part under Parisians’ well-shod feet. But long before Paris was Paris, it was a thriving Roman city. And while Rome itself may not have been built in a day, Roman Paris can be explored in a day of walking on the Left Bank in the 5th arrondissement and in the Ile de la Cité. I recently spent a day looking for what I could find of this long gone metropolis in what is now one of the most touristed areas in Paris. But with an eye (and a guidebook) to the ancient past, I could begin to sense the Roman heart that beat under the souvenir shops and traffic jams of the Latin Quarter.
I began my tour in a leafy park called the “Arènes de Lutèce” that was filled with grey-haired men playing pétanque, kids playing football and young couples canoodling on benches, most of them seemingly oblivious to the fact that they were in what was once the second largest amphitheatre of Roman Gaul. Built in the 2nd century on the slope of Montagne Ste-Genevière, it sat 10,000 and hosted circuses and theatre. But by the 4th- century, as Rome’s power declined, locals were using it as a quarry and over the centuries, it was forgotten and buried. It wasn’t until 1869 when workers dug up part of the structure while expanding rue Monge that Paris remembered its gladiatorial past. It was Victor Hugo who led a campaign to preserve the amphitheatre and today its circular walls are among the largest Roman ruins in the city.
From the amphitheatre it is a 10-minute walk to the very centre of Roman Paris, which is now the bustling university quarter around the Sorbonne. Rue St. Jacques (near rue Soufflot), a street lined with student cafes and bookshops, follows what was Lutetia’s ‘cardo maximus’ (the main north-south road in all Roman towns). A surprisingly non-descript apartment building (no. 172-4) marks the spot that was once the geographic centre of the Roman city, where the colossal Forum once stood (between today’s rues Malabranche, St. Jacques, Cujas and St. Michel). The Forum’s foundations are still there, but, like much of Lutetia, the remains are hidden underneath centuries old buildings and roads. However tantalizing bits have been left exposed; for instance, a piece of the Forum’s wall can be seen in the underground parking garage of 61 rue St. Michel and on the nearby Place de la Sorbonne, a Gallo-Roman well sits quite unnoticed by those sipping coffee and wine on numerous cafes terraces. From this square, it is a short stroll down the rue de la Sorbonne which lies atop the same route Lutetians once strolled from the Forum to what is now the most spectacular of all Paris’ ancient remains, the Cluny Baths.
Along busy rue St. Michel and rue St. Germain sit the stone and brick walls of the tepidarium (warm bath) and frigidarium (cold bath) and inside the extraordinary Cluny Museum visitors can see sculpted ancient gods and walk under soaring Roman vaults. Informative panels help give a sense of daily life in ancient Paris, which I discovered showed little sign of its future epicurean status: archaeologists have found that the primary diet consisted of mushy grains (i.e. gruel) and occasionally meat, including dog. I opted for a more modern Parisian lunch at the nearby, celebrated brasserie “Le Comptoir” which is nevertheless located within the confines of ancient Lutetia.
From the Cluny Baths, I walked along rue de la Harpe and rue St Severin following the route of a Roman road leading to the Ile de la Cité. Now lined with shops selling touristy trinkets and Greek gyros, this historic route originally lead to the only bridge across the Seine in Roman times, today replaced by the Petit Pont that leads to the iconic cathedral of Notre Dame. However long before Quasimodo was swinging from its belfry, Lutetians were worshiping the god Jupiter in a temple whose remains are lost under the medieval cathedral. But before the cathedrals’ façade the remains of Roman houses and quays uncovered during the construction of underground parking lot in the 1960s can be visited in an archaeological crypt and other ancient remnants are dotted around the tiny island.
Parisian lawyers and their clients can often be seen strategizing around the entrance gates of the nearby “Palais du Justice,” (the city Law Courts), which stand on the site of the late Roman Imperial Palace. Across the street is the rue de Lutèce. Here in 1906, archaeologists dug up Roman stele and building stones used in a late Roman basilica which are now in the Cluny Museum. The curving rue Chanoinesse and rue de la Colombe both follow the late Gallo-Roman wall that once protected the city from barbarian hoards. Its exact line is traced in the pavement before 5 rue de la Colombe. And on the eastern tip of the island, Square Jean XXIII offers views up the Seine towards Bercy. In this working class neighbourhood, which today holds the famous Cinémathèque Française housed in a Frank Gerhy building, archaeologists have discovered the remains of a Neolithic settlement of the Parisii, the Celtic tribe conquered by Julius Ceasar in 52BCE. The items discovered, including near complete riverboats, are now displayed in the Carnavalet Museum a short walk from the Ile de la Cité in the fashionable Marais district.
Housed in the 17th-century mansion that once belonged to Madame de Sevigne, the museum is the repository for the artefacts of the history of Paris. Along with Voltaire’s armchair and Marcel Proust’s bedroom, visitors can see scale models of Lutetia as well as items like 2nd century Romans glass goblets, mosaics and sculpted deities – including a figure of Isis found on rue St. Jacques in 1899.
There are traces of the Romans all over Paris: vestiges of Roman residences have been found in the Luxembourg Gardens; there are more baths near rue Gay Lussac, a theatre under Rue Racine, the Church of Val de Grace was once a Roman cemetery and the ruins of a temple to the god Mars have been uncovered in Montmartre. And more are found all the time. In May 2006, one of the earliest residential quarters of Lutetia dating to the 2nd-century was uncovered during construction of new buildings for the Pierre and Marie Currie University on rue St. Jacques; just another layer to the millefeuille of history that lies under modern Paris.
IF YOU GO
Musée national du Moyen Âge - Thermes et hôtel de Cluny: 6, place Paul Painlevé, 75005; www.musee-moyenage.fr.
Crypte archéologique du parvis de Notre-Dame de Paris: 1, place du Parvis de Notre-Dame, 75001; http://www.paris.fr/portail/Culture/Portal.lut?page_id=6468&document_type_id=5&document_id=19971&portlet_id=14628
Musée Carnavalet : 23, rue de Sévigné, 75004; www.carnavalet.paris.fr
For more on Roman Paris see: www.paris.culture.fr/en/.
For the latest archaeological finds in Paris see the website of INRAP (Institut national de recherches archéologiques preventives): www.inrap.fr/site/en/.
Where to Stay:
Hotel de Lutèce: 65 rue St Louis en I’Ile, 4th arr., tel: (+33) 01 43 26 23 52; www.paris-hotel-lutece.com. Doubles from €185. Cosy, historic hotel on Ile St Louis.
Hotel Lutetia: 45 Bd. Raspail, 6th arr., tel: (+33) 01 49 54 46 46; www.lutetia.paris.com. Doubles from €400. Luxurious, art deco hotel in the 6th arrondissement.
Where to eat:
Le Comptoir: 9 carrefour d’Odéon, 6th arr; tel: (+33) 01 44 27 07 97. Celebrated chef Yves Camdeborde’s casual, gourmet brasserie.
Moorish tearoom in the Mosque of Paris: 2, pl. du Puits-de-l’Ermite, 5th arr.; tel: (+33) 01 45 35 97 33. Not quite Roman but close to the amphitheatre and serving delicious Middle Eastern fare.
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