La Madeleine, Paris

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At first glance La Madeleine looks like a temple. Well, it was build in 1806 as a temple to the glory of Napoleon's army. Two years later the Arc de Triomphe was finalized, so the role of the temple increased.

After Napoleon's dead the building was transformed into a Roman Catholic church. Before the construction od the temple there had been efforts to build a church in honor of Mary Magdalene at this location, but those plans never materialized completely.

La Madeleine is built in the Neo-Classical style with 20 meters high pilars.

Visiting hours: Daily 9.30AM - 7PM.

Being part a family that are very in touch with their digestive tracts (was there ever a nation more fixated on their bowel functions than the Germans?), I would argue that I have a greater than average appreciation for an out-of-the-ordinary loo.

So when I happened to be in Paris on business and read about the Art Deco toilets adjacent to La Madeleine in VT's list of Top Ten Toilets, I rushed out to investigate with all the joyful enthusiasm of a ferret dashing up a drainpipe.

But alas! The Art Deco toilets (down steps close to the corner with Boulevard de la Madeleine) were locked, and by the look of the accumulated rubbish in the stairwell, had been closed for some time. "Tant pis", as they say in those parts (or were purported to do so when I was learning my schoolgirl French)! However, the lovely mosaics on the walls gave a hint of the grandeur hidden within, and I can only hope that their closure is a temporary aberation ... if so, drop me a line so that I can be sure to make my pilgrimage on a future visit!

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Since several years when visiting Paris for work or tourism I stay in the area of the Madeleine church. I like this area; there are a lot of shops, small or large (like Le Printemps at the nearby Bvd. Haussmann), restaurants, brasseries, several metro stations, some monuments (Opéra Garnier) and at night the place is rather quiet and safe. It is not a cheap area but it is certainly less expensive than the nearby Place Vendôme. In a side street I found a hotel which is much less chick than the Ritz but also much, much less expensive.

This being said, each time I see La Madeleine I think this is the most unusual church I know in France, a pastiche of antiquity.
Under the "Ancien Régime" a project of a church existed based on the usual Latin cross plan. This was halted at the Revolution and modified by Napoleon into a Greek temple to the glory of his victorious army. The architect was Pierre-Alexandre Vignon. After the disastrous campaign of Russia the Emperor changed mind and came back to a church.
Then came king Louis XVIII but it was only after a number of twist and turns that the present church was ended by King Louis Philippe in 1842.

The church of La Madeleine is a perfect illustration of neo-classical architecture. On a monumental base with 28 stairs there are 52 columns, of 20 m height, in Corinthian style. In the wall between the columns are 52 statues of saints by various sculptors.
The carved pediment of Henri Lemaire shows the Last Judgment, Christ appears surrounded by two angels. Marie-Madeleine is on the right kneeling to intercede for the damned, she thus expresses the repentance.
The bronze doors made by Triqueti are exceptional by their dimensions which make them larger than the bronze door of St. Peters in Rome.

The church is especially nice to look at when the stairs of the southern entrance at rue Royale are decorated with flowers. From the stairs there is a nice view on the obelisk of the Place de la Concorde only 500 m distant with in the back another Neo-Classical façade of the Assemblée Nationale -Palais Bourbon.

Open: each day 9.30 - 19.00 h
A much visited church of Paris with 600.000 visitors/year.

The interior of the church is supposed to show an interesting neo-classical décor but the church is so dark inside that apart from the high altar with some lights and a statue on the left side with a hundred lit candles most details are lost for the visitor.

The interior design of the Madeleine is of a remarkable homogeneity. This rare aesthetic unit for a church is due to the fact that the interior achievement was done in a short time. With its single nave the church has similarities with ancient basilicas. The cupolas with the weak lighting remember the Pantheon in Rome.
The columns of the nave are in Corinthian style like those outside.
Marble from various origins is the essential material for the decoration. The white marble from Carrare contrasts with the red marbles from Belgium. Gildings underline the ornaments.
The sculptures are due to famous artists of the first half of the 19th c.
They were directly carved in white stone or Carrara marble. No stuccos here.
If your nocturnal vision is superior to normal you will certainly appreciate the most remarkable decoration of this church.

Open: each day 9.30 - 19.00 h
A much visited church with 600.000 visitors/year.

The Pinacothèque museum is located at the Place de la Madeleine next to the luxury Fauchon food shop. The pinacothèque specializes in temporary exhibitions.
Current exhibitions (2011):

"Romanov, tsars collectionneurs" from 26 January 2011 to 29 May 2011.
A collection of a hundred pieces from the St-Petersburg's Ermitage Museum.

"Esterházy, princes collectionneurs" from 26 January 2011 to 29 May 2011.

Hugo Pratt the creator of Corto Maltese, from March 17 through August 21, 2011.

Price: 10 €, combined ticket 17 €.

I mentionned here previously (2010) a very good exhibition on the the Dutch Golden Age, what explains the photo:
"The 17th Dutch century is indeed one of the best periods in the art of painting and perhaps not so well known in Paris although Le Louvre has a good department of the Northern Schools with two Vermeer.
This exhibition is organized in association with the Rijksmuseum of Amsterdam (partially closed for works till 2013 ref. my tips).
There are 60 paintings in all the genres of the Dutch Golden Age and by the best masters: Rembrandt, Vermeer, Gerard ter Borch, Pieter de Hooch, Frans Hals, Jan van Goyen, Jacob van Ruysdael, Jan Steen, etc. and about 30 graphic works.
It is certainly a good introduction which I would recommend.
I have seen these works in Holland (if you are interested ref. my tips about the Amsterdam and Haarlem museums)."

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It's no accident that it looks like a transport from ancient Greece or Rome. The Madeleine was constructed as less of a church than a monument to Napoleon's army, and the design was lifted from a classic Roman temple in southern France. It almost attained ecclesiastical status under Louis XVIII but was christened a monument to national, post-Revolution reconciliation before the work was finished. Finally, after narrowly escaping fate as a train station, it was consecrated to St. Mary Magdalene in 1842 and continues to serve as a parish church.

My favorite part of this one is the lovely and unusual altar figure of the Magdalene ascending into heaven with the help of several angels, and the half dome above it with an oculus illuminating a painted fresco and ring of saints. Amusingly the fresco, depicting the history of Christianity, illustrates the Emperor himself being adored by a cluster of clergy - who are oblivious to the biblical principles floating just above their heads!

Here's a nice panorama of the interior:
http://www.panoramicearth.com/1516/Paris/Eglise_de_St-Marie-Madeleine_Church

Open 7 AM -7 PM Mon - Sat; 8:00 - 1:30 and 3:30 to 7:00 Sun. Entrance is free

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The building of a church was started in 1757, halted, and started again in 1777, stopped again with the Revolution of 1789, when more secular purposes were suggested for the space- a library, a public ballroom, and a marketplace. In 1806 Napoleon decided to erect a "Temple to the Glory of the Great Army", and after more intrigue, it was finally consecrated as a church in 1842.

Above the high altar, there is a statue depicting St Mary Magdalene being carried up to heaven by two angels. The half-dome above the altar has a fresco entitled The History of Christianity, showing the key figures in the Christian religion with — a sign of its Second Empire date — Napoleon occupying center stage.

It's in our "Things to Do" for the next trip to Paris...

The greek temple just north of the Place the Concorde - 'La Madeleine' . It is actually a church dedicated to St. Mary Magdalene.
52 Corinthian columns surround the temple, each of them twenty meter high (66 ft).