Paris' Seine River bridges symbolize the city's beauty and history like nothing else. Knitting together not just Paris’ left and right banks but also the city’s rich past and vibrant present, each bridge boasts its own unique story. Indeed, the bridges of Paris have played a significant role in the life of the city for millennium. Today I focus on one of my personal favorites: the Pont des Arts.
The Pont des Arts is the pedestrian bridge linking the Cour Carré of the Louvre Museum with the dome of the Institut de France. Though a bridge had been proposed for this location as far back as the mid-1600s, the original Pont des Arts would not be completed until 1804 under the direction of Napoleon I.
The quintessential man of his time, Emperor Bonaparte wanted to be the first French leader to build an iron bridge in Paris. His finished bridge consisted of nine arched metal spans supported by seven stone piers. Though while the Emperor was satisfied with the delicate lines and light symmetry that set his bridge apart from its more sober stone cousins, universal appreciation for the Pont des Arts was not immediately forthcoming. Critics called it “shabby”, “timid”, and “mean”, among other things.
History would prove Napoleon right on this point, however. The Pont des Arts, so named for its bond to the Palais des Arts – as the Louvre was called after the Revolution – has held a favored place among artists for decades. It has been the subject of countless paintings and photographs; has figured prominently in French literature and popular ballads; and has featured in numerous films and television programs, no doubt due to the extraordinary view from to bridge: east toward the Ile de la Cité and the towers of Notre Dame and west toward La Tour Eiffel.
Today’s Pont Des Arts – rebuilt in the early 1980s to remedy the damage caused by wartime aerial bombardments and peacetime boat collisions – is a veritable studio en pleine air (open air studio). Artists and musicians gather here daily to contribute to the magic of this now mythic location. Lovers flock to the bridge as well to secure for themselves a future of love and happiness by fixing to the structure a padlock bearing their names and symbolically tossing the key into the Seine. Only in the city of Romance!
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How many bridges span the river Seine within the Paris city limits?
Post your answer in the comments box below. Tell us your story of the Pont des Arts while you’re at it. Or let us know the name of your favorite Paris bridge.
Images:
Renoir, Pierre-Auguste (1841-1919). The Pont des Arts, 1867. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons and the Norton Simon Museum, Pasadena, CA.
Bruxelles5. The Île de la Cité view from The Pont des Arts. 9 April 2010(2010-04-09), courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.