The Pont-Neuf and The Dauphine Square

 Picture: Costa (2015)

On a triangular terrain, at the tip of the Ile-de-la-Cité, King Henri IV had a new bridge built for the city, so technological that it would be the only one of that time to resist to this day. The year was 1610, and the first bridge of Paris devoid of buildings on top was inaugurated. Its protruding pillars and Roman arches made it possible to overcome its greatest challenge over the centuries: the streams of the Seine River. Throughout the crowning of the bridge, one can observe the masks, satirical figures that had the purpose of repelling evil, as well as the gargoyles of Notre-Dame Cathedral.

Picture: Costa (2015)

In the houses around the triangular square, only the ground floor, being at the height of the passers, was made of stone because of the high cost of this material for the time. The other floors were made of bricks. The Dauphine Square had shops on every floor, an idea that was not new for the 17th century, but which guaranteed the aesthetics and functionalism of the place. Nowadays the square is easily accessed by the Pont-Neuf Station (subway line 7). There is also the garden and the statue of Vert-Galant, as King Henri IV, the "old seducer", was known.