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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The building at 75-77 rue Réaumur in the 2nd arrondissement of Paris dates from the second half of the 17th century. It was built on land acquired in 1672 by sculptor Martin Desjardins, who completed its construction in 1688. From that year the house was rented. This building retains a remarkable artistic heritage: its vestibule still houses original Desjardins plasters, having served as models for the bronze bas-reliefs of the former equestrian statue of Louis XIV, erected Place des Victoires and destroyed during the French Revolution.

The protection of the building as a Historic Monument was formalized by a decree of 6 November 1997, covering its facades, roofs, stairwells and the old coach pass. These architectural elements reflect the classical style of the Grand Siècle, while Desjardins plasters illustrate the link between this place and royal artistic production under Louis XIV. The exact address, 75-77 rue Réaumur (with a secondary entrance at 33 rue Dussoubs), places the building in a central district of Paris, marked by subsequent Haussmannian urbanization.

Although the current GPS location suggests an approximate address at 96 Réaumur Street, the archives of the Merimée Base confirm its historic location at 75-77. The building, still standing, offers a rare example of a 17th-century bourgeois dwelling keeping tangible traces of its artistic past. Its state of conservation and accessibility (noted 6/10 for accuracy of location) make it a valuable, though unknown, testimony to the Parisian heritage of the modern era.

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