Musee de Cluny

Looking at statues and tapestries from the Middle Ages is a lovely way to spend an afternoon.  Which is exactly what we did today in our Monuments class.  The museum was started after Alexandre du Sommerand donated his impressive collection of Middle Ages art after his death.  The museum is in an old Roman bath that later became a Noble's city house.  The architecture is a combination of Middle Ages, Gothic, and Roman styles. 

 Courtyard of Musee de Cluny

 Wellwater!

Many towers in the Middle Ages have stair cases inside to provide access to the rest of the building.

 King David Stained Glass Window

Original from the Saint Chapelle!

 Another original vitreaux from the Saint Chapelle.

The Devil looks pretty mad...

Alabaster Sculpture

 Why can't all windows look like this?

 Heads from the statues of Kings on the front of Notre Dame.  The kings were decapitated during the revolution because the revolutionaries wrongly believed them to be French Kings.  They are biblical kings, none of their crowns have Fleur de Lys.  The heads were later used to construct other buildings because stone was so expensive.  The sculptures were discovered in 1977 and were then moved to the museum. 

Adam

This statue was originally inside Notre Dame, by a statue of Eve.  Unfortunately, Eve has been lost, but Adam has survived.  The statue still has some remnants of paint (green on the leaves, brown in the hair) that allow the viewer to picture what the statue would have looked like back in the day.

 Part of the old Roman baths

 The Lady and the Unicorn

One of 6 tapestries, each represents a different sense.  This particular one represents sight.  The tapestries were made in 1495 in Brussels.

Touch

Smell

I'm sorry I was not able to get a good picture of each tapestry.  The 6th tapestry's meaning is unclear, but many scholars believe it to represent love and fidelity.  As my host mom said, it looks like the tapestries were made only a few years ago, not a few hundred.  The color is still fantastic, the reds and blues are still very vibrant.  The tapestries were a gift to a noble woman for her marriage, she is the one depicted in each tapestry with the unicorn.  They were very beautiful to look at, so detailed and ornate.  The style is called "mille fleur" or "thousand flower" because of all the flowerd decorations in the background.  For more info on the Lady and the Unicorn, here's wikipedia to the rescue (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lady_and_the_Unicorn)!

 The Chapel

 For some light reading, just pack your bible stories carved in ivory.

I think this was a reliquary for a saint, I just thought it was cool that there was a golden foot in the Musee de Cluny.

Alors, that's all for now mes amis!  I hope you're enjoying reading my blog as much as I'm enjoying writing it!

Bisous,

Allison