728 ' Northle 
The Streets are much handfomer and lefs dirty than 
they were formerly, (which gave it the Name of Lute- 
tia) and their Squares are exceeding noble j they are 
enlightned in the Night-time by Lanthorns hung on 
Lines* The whole Bulk of this fpacious City is divided 
into three Parts ; the firft is called la Vilk^ containing 
the four Suburbs of St. Antoine, Du 'Temple, St. Martin 
and St, Denis, being encompafs’d with the Sein on one 
Side, and Walls on the other *, the fecond is call’d la 
Cite, feated betwixt the firft and the third, upon what 
is properly call’d the IJle, furrounded by the Branches 
of the before- mentioned River, and joyn’d to the reft 
by Bridges, being the moft ancient part of the Town ; 
the third Part is called tho. Univerjity, feated on. a rif- 
ing Ground, containing the Colleges ereded for the Pro- 
moting of Learning, and the Fauxbourgs or Suburbs of 
St. Germain, St. Michael, St. J agues, St. Marcell, and 
St. ViAoire. 
The Suburb of St. Germain has the beft Palaces and 
Colleges. For the reft ; in all the three Quarters are 
reckoned forty Parifli Churches, forty two Abbeys and 
Convents, -forty Nunneries, twenty four Hofpitals, forty 
eight Colleges, befides feventeen Chapels-, fo that Charity 
and Religion feems to take up a confiderable Part of 
this great City. The Sein pafies through the Middle of 
it, and the Water is very fweet and frefh here, but has 
no Tide,- like our Thames about London. So much of 
it in general. We will now proceed to give you the Par- 
ticulars. The Louvre, were it finifh’d according to the 
firft Defign, would queftionlefs exceed all Strudlures in 
the World, whereas now only two Sides are compleated, 
viz. that towards the Sein and Thuilleries, the Hotels of 
Crequi, Longueville and Montaufier being fince built 
within the Compafs of this Strudlure, which for this and 
fome other Realons (amongft which the Siding of this 
City, with theMalecontents in this King’s Minority is none 
of the leaft ) is fuppos’d will never be finifh’d, it being 
certain that the third Part of the Charges employ’d in 
Building of Verfailles, would have made this as compleat 
and magnificent a Strudfure as ever the World beheld : 
Some fay Philip the Augufi was the firft Founder of it, 
above 500 Years ago, but the Fabrick, as it now (lands, 
oweth its Rife to Francis 1 . The Hall call’d le Salle de 
Cent Swifs,^oxme.r\y the Hall of Audience forAmbafladors, 
was by Mary de Medicis turn’d into a Playhoufe. On the 
Porches you fee feveral Infcriptions, fufiiciently demon- 
ftrating that the French were always good at flattering 
their Monarchs, though they then did not come up to 
that Height as they have fince, in bellowing the Epi- 
thet of Viro Immortali and other fuch-like blafphemous 
Expreffions upon them. Upon this Occafion I can- 
not forbear inferting three Diftichs made by the 
French Poets, exceeding for their Loftinefs the Struc- 
ture itfelf: 
Rex, Regnum, atque Domus, tria funt Miracula Mundil 
Rex animo, Regnum viribus, arte Domus. 
Non orbis gentem, non urbem gens habet ullam, 
Vrbfve Domum, Dominum nec Domus ulla parem. 
Louvre Domus, Dominus Ludovicus, Regia Rege 
Digna fuQ, Ccelo eji hac minor, ilk Deo. 
All the Antiquities and Roman Statues, with a moft 
curious Cabinet of Paintings formerly preferv’d here, 
are tranfported to Verfailles ; there are however fome 
Pieces left of le Brun\ and that celebrated Piece of 
Paul Veronefe^s Wedding of Cana, prefented to the King 
by the Senate of Venice for the Servi, in whole Church 
it flood on the Altar, having fold the fame to the French 
King, the Senate hearing of it, to check thefe merce- 
nary Monks, prefented it to the King. Their Academy 
for the cultivating and improving the French Tongue, 
inftituted by the prefent King’s Father, confiding of 
forty or fifty of the moft ingenious Perfons of the City, 
is kept here ever fince. Many of the chief Artifts be- 
longing to the King have their Apartments in this Pa- 
lace s their chief Painter then was M. le Brun, ftnee 
dead their head Graver was Girardon , and for Sculp- 
I G H ’ ^ Travels Book II. 
tures, Medals and Coin, M. Rotier, whole two Brothers 
have the Honour to ferve in the fame Employment to 
the Kings of England and Spain. And not far from 
thefe they fliew you another fpacious Place call’d the 
Guard meuble, fror’d v;ith all Sorts of Paintings, Ta- 
peflries and curious Cabinets. 
The Thuillery is alfo a Part of the Louvre, where it 
faces the fine Garden of the Thuilleries -, it was formerly 
furnifh’d with Abundance of the beft Painting, and 
other Movables of the beft Workmanfliip, which have 
been carried to Verfailles : That Part which fronts the 
Garden is a long beautiful Piece of a Fabrick begun by 
Henry IV. and compleated by Lewis XIV. The The- 
atre in it is exceeding noble, and the Gardens before it 
not inferior to any in Europe, not excepting even Ver^ 
failles the Walks and Plantations whereof are in- 
deed more coftly, but not more delightful and regu- 
lar. At the lower End of it, Hands a noble Statue 
of Verity carried off in the Arms of Time, with this 
infeription j 
Opus Petri d Frankavilla Comer acenfis, Ann. 1609. 
Tliere are divers excellent Pieces extant of this grea^ 
Mailer. 
The Royal Palace, call’d Palais Royale, does alfo be- 
long to the King, being the ordinary Refidence of the 
Duke of Orleans, the King’s only Brother, when in 
Town ; it is compos’d of two fair Courts, with a delici- 
ous Garden behind it ; Cardinal Richlieu was the Founder 
of it, who alfo built here a Theatre on Purpofe for Tra- 
gedies, of which he was a great Admirer ; but fince 
Moliere had Liberty to aft his Comedies there, and 
after his Death the Opera’s were afted in the fame 
Theatre. The Place-Royal is a vaft Square, open to- 
wards the Street of S. Honore, intended chiefly for the 
King’s Statue, which is to be put in the Middle, for 
which Reafon they have demolilh’d the FLotel de Ven- 
dofne, and ruin’d the Convent of the Capuchins... 
Near this is another Struflure call’d le Palais Brion, 
defign’d for a Library, but fince turn’d into two Aca- 
demies, viz. for Architeblure and Painting ; the firft 
ereefted by M. Colbert ; Manfard, Perault, Blondel and 
Felibien were Members of it, ; they meet two or three 
Times a Week to confult about the molt curious Mo- 
dels in Architecture that can be contriv’d. That of 
the Painters acknowledges M. Noyers, Secretary of 
State, for its Founder, but M. Colbert for its Reflorer ; 
of this yi.le Brun, their great Painter, was Prefident. 
They keep here a good CoileClion of original Paintings 
of fome of the beft Mailers, Statues, Buftoms of ancient 
Roman Sculpture to defign by ; befides which, they hire 
every Day fome clean-limb’d Man or Woman, who 
expofe themfelves naked to their view. The Houfe, 
known by the Name of the Cabinet du Roy, contain’d 
formerly great Store of curious Pidlures, Medals, Agates, 
and fuch-like Rarities, as alfo the Anticalia found in 
Childeric the Firfl’s Tomb at Tournay, with his Library, 
and a confiderable Collecftion of Manuferipts, among 
which was Sc. Cyprian*^ Work, brought thither from 
St. Lawrenceh Library at Florence but thefe are for the 
moft part now at Verfailles. 
The Academy of Sciences was likewife founded by 
M. Colbert ; they are employ’d in promoting Mathe- 
maticks, Phyfick, and natural Philofophy, like our 
Royal Society, which exceeds theirs both in the Number 
of its Members and Advancement of Learning. They 
have many Nobemen’s Houfes of Note, call’d by them 
Hotels that of the great M. Colbert, now in the Pof- 
felTion of the Marquis of Seignelay, is a very noble Fa- 
brick, and his Library is moft exquifite, both for its 
Number of good Books and curious Manuferipts ; they 
fhew you a ManufcriptBible as old as the Reign of Charlel 
le Chauve *, the famous Hiftorian M. de Thou has alfo 
left the Publick an excellent Library. Moft of their 
Noblemens Palaces of Note are furnilh’d with very good 
ColleClions of Original PiClures by the moft excellent 
Hands, which they have purchas’d for the moft Part from 
the covetous Italians among thefe the Palais Mazarin, 
and the Hotel de Seiguier, deferve to be particularly re- 
membered » 
