Discovering the 16th Arrondissement of Paris
The other day, I met up with my friend Laura from Ciao Amalfi to explore the 16th Arrondissement. Our primary objective was to visit the lesser-known Musée Marmottan-Monet, but we decided to stroll through nearby streets afterwards. Photographs weren’t allowed inside the museum, but I must admit that it had an excellent collection! If you love the Orangerie with Monet’s waterlilies, you’ll like this museum. They also had a pretty fabulous collection of medieval illuminated manuscripts, most of them extremely detailed and shining with golden gilding.
Just across the street from the museum, we spotted some unique architectural details. One door was guarded by two panthers amid roses. Another was decorated with pinecones and evergreen boughs. Panthers and pinecones are not typical motifs in Parisian architecture. These buildings definitely fall under the Art Nouveau category, but there was something else about these designs I couldn’t quite put my finger on…