Monday 19 August 2013

The Cotelle Gallery

Louis XIV loved his gardens and to protect his shrubs from the wind he had the Cotelle Gallery built. However, the gallery defies the rules of symmetry that is normally followed in royal estates. One side of the gallery has 11 French windows but the other only has five. No less than 24 paintings are hung in the Cotelle Gallery; they portray the gardens of Versailles and the Trianons as they were in 1687. Napoleon was not fond of the paintings and had them taken down - luckily they were brought back to their original place in 1913. Originally, every niche had a little sofa to rest upon but Louis-Philippe had them removed and two marble wine coolers were installed. The gallery is named after Jean Cotelle the Younger who was in Louis XIV's employ as a miniaturist and portraitist.

The gallery measures 52 metres in length and 7 metres in width. It links the Grand Trianon with the Trianon-sur-Bois used to house the growing family of Louis XV. Five crystal chandeliers hangs from the ceiling - they are from the manufacture Montcenis.



Paris 2012 488
One of the wine coolers

Close-up of one of the chandeliers

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