The Price of Gold

 
[Napoleon III apartments, detail of door header with gold leaf, Louvre, Paris, April, 2009 /Image & Artwork:
 designslinger]

The price of gold is reaching all time highs week after week, during our Great Recession.

 
[Napoleon III stair; Hall /Images & Artwork: designslinger]

Perhaps then, it was a good thing that when Napoleon III asked Ludovico Visconti to give
him a suite of rooms in the Louvre palace, it was good to be king when gold was cheaper and cost was no object.

 
[Minister of State room; Room details; Napoleon III apartments, Louvre /Images & Artwork: designslinger]

The opulence is overwhelming.

 
[State Room, Napoleon III apartments /Image & Artwork: designslinger]

The Minister of State rooms were finished in 1861 under the direction of Hector Lefuel,
who took over after Visconti's death in 1853. In 1871, when Napoleon was overthrown, the new French government installed the Ministry of Economy and Finance in the space, which seems very appropriate. They moved out 118 years later, and now we can all feast our eyes on the gold, gilded glow.

Posted by designslinger at 11/16/2009 2:43 AM
Categories: Cities,Architecture,Interior Design,Decorative Arts
Tags: Napoleon III apartments Paris Louvre gilding
 

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