Book: Historic Photos of Paris

It's been almost a year since my last visit to France, and I miss it. Knowing that there's no visit on the horizon accentuates the longing; writing about the darn place nearly every day doesn't help.

I had moments of relief while looking through a new coffee table book, Historic Photos of Paris, by Rebecca Schall. The dozens of pictures here are culled largely from the archives of the Rogers-Viollet Agency, one of the most extensive collections of its kind. Many of the shots, although beautiful, are of historic rather than artistic interest, but of interest nonetheless. Some pictures of major sites like the Place St. Germaine Auxerrois from a hundred years age are eerily pristine; others offer a sense of wonder, like a number of pictures from the Universal Exposition of 1889 which give you a sense of what a grand undertaking the event was. There are frightening shots of France during the Occupation.

Many familiar sites are given their due. Some of these photographs document how well the city has preserved its heritage, but others, such as one of the Rue Mouffetard (a favorite spot of mine) from the 1920's, show how much has changed. Schall is generous with her captions, giving each photograph an extensive explanation and a context, and there's often a note about the current state of a subject as well.

A short slide show of some shots from the book heads this post.

Comments

[Richard]

I'll definitely have to check this one out. Thanks!