From the Eiffel Tower to the Cour du Bel Air: the under-protection of Paris

All the versions of this article: English , français
1. The Eiffel Tower
Photo: Didier Rykner
See the image in its page

In an interview published today in Le Parisien, French Culture Minister Rachida Dati announced her plans to impose a mandatory classification on the Eiffel Tower (ill. 1), should the Mayor of Paris refuse the classification that has been requested of her and that must be submitted (see this article) in December to the National Commission for Heritage and Architecture. It’s a strong and normal gesture, for which we should be grateful. While the Eiffel Tower is obviously not threatened with destruction, it is under attack from many quarters, and a listing should help to counter this. What’s more, it is of course totally anomalous that this unique and outstanding monument does not benefit from the highest level of protection for a building under the French Heritage Law (see these articles).

However, this is not enough to protect Paris, and Rachida Dati seems to have understood this. This is the first time to our knowledge that a French Minister of Culture has said out loud what the capital’s defenders have been saying for ages: "Paris is an under-protected city. Our capital is sadly distinguished from other major French cities by the low number of protected and classified sites". So we urgently need to create new outstanding heritage sites in a city that has only two, despite being the largest and most historic in France. Here again, we said as much in a previous article.

The fact is that the associations and even the Ministry of Culture, when it is willing to look into the city’s heritage issues, are exhausting themselves on one-off issues that should have been resolved a long time ago with the creation of these protected areas. Let’s not forget that a "remarkable heritage site", as they are now called, aims to protect a historic district in its entirety. Developed in partnership between the State and the municipality, with the assistance of experts, the process, which can take several months, involves determining which buildings need to be preserved and safeguarded, as well as protecting the interior features that deserve it.

2. 1820 staircase threatened with demolition
in the absence of protection from the Ministry of Culture
Photo: Didier Rykner
See the image in its page

An example of what could be achieved by such a remarkable heritage site in the Faubourg Saint-Antoine (an idea to which, it should be noted, even the mayor of the 11th arrondissement subscribes), would be to prevent the destruction of outstanding heritage features in the Cour du Bel Air, known as the Cour des Mousquetaires. We devoted an article to this matter, which is becoming increasingly threatening as the nineteenth-century staircase (ill. 2) could be destroyed overnight from 15 October. At the request of co-owners who oppose its demolition in order to install a lift (for which another solution exists), the judge stated that if the Ministry of Culture did not take any protective measures, this would prove the lack of interest in the site. Demolition could therefore take place very quickly.

3. 17th-century staircase known as the "Black Musketeers" staircase
Not protected as a historic monument
Photo: Didier Rykner
See the image in its page

But the dossier put together by the DRAC is full of errors. These buildings, theoretically protected by the PLU (which in reality protects very little and not at all the interiors), are of outstanding interest. The two houses on rue du Faubourg Saint-Antoine date from 1637 and are the oldest on this street; the 17th-century cross-vaulted cellars are the only ones of their type to survive in this district; the 17th-century staircase known as "of the Black Musketeers" (ill. 3) was already mentioned in 19th century tourist guides; as for the 1820 staircase, it is a rare example of a cabinetmaker’s staircase, of very fine quality, which also has a memorial interest as a witness to the deportation of the Jewish inhabitants of this building. It is this staircase that is to be demolished first, which will also affect part of the cellars.

It is vital that the Ministry of Culture initiates classification proceedings for this complex as soon as possible. This would initially enable the historic monument registration dossier to be completed (remember that this does not require the owners’ authorisation). This could serve as a launch pad for the creation of a remarkable heritage site for the Faubourg Saint-Antoine, and then for other districts of Paris that deserve it just as much. Rachida Dati has made the right diagnosis, and it is now urgent to move on to concrete measures.

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