Nicolas-François Blondel

Porte Saint-Denis

1672

Rue Saint-Denis:

A virtual walk along one of the oldest streets of Paris

with Chris Boicos

First created by the Romans in the 1st century as the main commercial road of the right bank of the Seine, the Rue St Denis is one of the historic streets of Paris least visited by tourists. Yet it is a fascinating street where architecture, commercial passages, medieval alleys, fountains, a Gothic church, and decorative details of every kind trace the long history of of the city from the Middle Ages to the 20th century. In our virtual walk we will discover through current photographs but also old paintings, prints and photos, all of the major and minor traces of Parisian history that can still be seen on the rue Saint-Denis today, as we stroll in a leisurely fashion from the Renaissance fountain of the Saints-Innocents to the magnificent baroque city gate of Louis XIV, the Porte Saint-Denis.