Gothic windows : the cupboards and lamp are of the same period. By the
left wall is an altar-screen of the 16th century.

From this church the Bue des Prètres St-Germain-1'Auxerrois leads to
the S. to the Place de l'Ecole (PI. R, 20; III), on the right. The gabled
house here (No. 5), with its king post, dates from the time of Francis I.;
No. 4 is the tavern of 'La Mère Moreaux', noted for brandy 'chinois'.

Diverging from the Place de l'Ecole on the left is the ancient Rue de
l'Arbre-Sec (PI. R, 20; III). where the Hotel des Mousquetaires (No. 4), the
balcony adorned with a mask, still stands. D'Artagnan (d. 1673), the hero
of the 'Trois Mousquetaires', is said to have lived here. —Beyond the Rue
de Rivoli, at the corner of the Rue St. Honore, on the left, is a fountain
designed by Souftlot in the place or one which used to stand (under Francis I.)
in the middle of the street beside the Croix du Trahoir. an ancient gallows-
tree. It is ornamented with stalactites and a charming nymph by Boizot
(an inscription at No. 111, Rue St. Honore, refers to it). —Nearly opposite,
Rue St. Honore (p. 87) No. 96, is the site of the house where Molière was
born (inscription almost illegible). To the right of the fountain, in the
same street, is a row of interesting old houses (Maison du Marteau d'Or,
No. 54, of the 18th cent., with a large circular balcony). Lastly, at No. 33,
beyond the Rue du Pont Neuf, the wine-shop 'A l'Enfant Jesus' has an
ancient grille of wrought iron (see p. 23), the design consisting of vine-
branches, with the monogram of Christ surmounted by the Child. We
return thence in 5 min. to the Rue du Louvre, by the Rue St. Honoré.

From the S. end of the Rue du Louvre the Pont-Neuf is visible,
with the statue of Henri IV. (p. 254); beyond it rises the dome of the
Pantheon (p. 276).

4. Palace and Galleries of the Louvre.

The Louvre (Pl. R, 17, 20; II), the most important public
building at Paris, both architecturally and on account of its treasures
of art, rises between the Rue de Rivoli and the Seine.

The Louvre perhaps derives its name from an ancient rendez-vous of
wolf-hunters, known as the Lupara, Lupera, or Louverie. It is usually
supposed that Philip Augustus (1180-1223) erected the first castle here; it
is at any rate certain that, when that monarch was constructing the new
city-walls he also built the massive corner-tower of which the founda-
tions were discovered in 1S85 in the cellar below the Museum of Anti-
quities (p. 96). The plan and extent of the mediaeval chateau were made
plain by the excavations of 1865 and are now indicated by a white line
on the ground in the S.W. corner of the Cour du Louvre. It was not,
however, until the time of Charles V. (1364-80), who removed his treasury
and library to it, that the chateau was fitted up in the handsome style
appropriate to a royal residence. Scarcely a trace of these buildings now
remains. In 1527 Francis I. (1515-47), an indefatigable builder, tore down
the old tower and modernized the chateau, and a little later he undertook
to rebuild it entirely. The growth of the building may be traced in the
adjoining Historical Plan. The works were directed by Pierre Lescot,
one of the greatest architects of the early French Renaissance period, who
was also retained by Henri II. (1547-59) and his successors, until his death
in 1578. To Lescot is due half the wing to the W. and S. of the Vieux
Louvre with its frontage on the Seine, and also the adjacent Pavilion du
Roi on the S. These 'pavilions' are a distinguishing feature of French
palaces; they were placed eit'ier at the angles or in the centre of the
facade, and are reminiscent of the mediseval towers. The rich three-
storied Facade in the W. court, the work of Jean Goujon and Paul Ponce,
is justly considered the most perfect monument of Francis I.'s time.