Dive into Versailles’s 400-Year History
“How to find words for Versailles? How to capture a charm that is often dazzling, sometimes shabby, or instant, or nostalgic, but that the vicissitudes of history have never managed to destroy, ever since a king resolved to make it a symbol of his power for all the world to see?” asks Catherine Pégard, the president of the Public Establishment of the Palace, Museum and National Estate of Versailles, in the introduction of Versailles: From Louis XIV to Jeff Koons ( Assouline, $895 ) .
The book, which Pégard penned in collaboration with author and Versailles expert Mathieu da Vinha, is an ode to the grand history of the storied château, pulling together drawings, paintings, photographs, and even film stills that capture the palace across eras.
Since it was built under the reign of Louis XIV, the Sun King, in the late 17th century, Versailles has served as architectural and artistic inspiration for designers around the world; countless private residences and public edifices have been crafted in the palace’s image. Today, it’s an icon of French history that draws some 10 million visitors each year.
“A palace of a thousand and one events, enough to fill a history book, perhaps; a palace of a thousand and one nights, enough to make an art book,” writes Pégard. “But for a long time now Versailles has no longer been the property of a monarchy, nor does it belong to history. On reflection, Versailles is first and foremost a palace of a thousand and one lives that enrich our imagination, just as the past inspires the present.”
Here, discover some of the images from the book that capture the long history of Versailles.
The painting Nocturne in Versailles (Les grandes eaux à Versailles) , 1864, by Eugène-Louis Lami.
The bedchamber of Marie Antoinette.
Each summer, a contemporary artist installs a work at Versailles. In 2013, Italian artist Giuseppe Penone installed Le Foglie delle Radici at the Bassin d’Apollon.
A statue of Marcus Curtius by Bernini and modified by Girardon, set at the edge of the Pond of the Swiss.
A detail from the Cabinet des Glaces Mouvantes in the Petit Trianon, the estate of Marie Antoinette.
A 1747 engraving by Charles-Nicolas Cochin the Elder depicting a party in the Hall of Mirrors.
A film still from Sofia Coppola’s Marie-Antoinette, starring Kirsten Dunst.
A view of Versailles’s famous gardens, which cover 1,976 acres.
This chair belongs to the mobilier aux épis set of furniture in the Petit Trianon, made in 1787 by Georges Jacob.
The Salon de la Guerre.
Versailles: From Louis XIV to Jeff Koons, by Catherine Pégard with Mathieu da Vinha.