[An illustration of a ship, symbolizing the symbol of Paris]

Histoire de Paris

Pont Neuf

Le 31 mai 1578, Henri III posait la premiere pierre du Pont-Neuf. Interrompus par la guerre civile, les travaux reprirent en 1599 pour être achevés le 8 juillet 1606. Conçu par Baptiste Androuet du Cerceau et Pierre des Illes, c’est le plus grand pont de Paris, long de 278 mètres pour ses douze arches; c’est aussı le premier à ne plus porter de maisons. En 1608, sur la deuxième arche à partir de la rive droite, fut édifiée une pompe élévatrice qui alimentait en eau le Louvre et les Tuileries. Ornee sur sa façade d’un bas-relief en bronze figurant le Christ et la Samaritaine, elle fut détruite en 1813. En 1635, Louis XIll fit ériger, face à la place Dauphine, une statue équestre de son père, détruite en 1792, et remplacée en 1818 par une nouvelle statue d’Henry IV due à Lemot. Dans une ville où les voies publiques étaient étroites et les espaces libres rares, ce large pont était une aubaine pour les bateleurs et charlatans qui s’y installèrent dès son ouverture. Le premier fut Tabarin dont la troupe jouait des farces en plein air, suivi par des bonimenteurs de toutes sortes, vendeurs de baume d’orviétan, arracheurs de dents et autres commerçants ambulants.

One of the series of signs describing historical places in Paris. The signs were placed starting in 1992 and are also called sucettes Starck (Starck’s Lollipops) after Philippe Starck who designed them.

The sign describes the "New Bridge" (Pont Neuf) which, despite its name, is the oldest bridge still standing in Paris.

The bridge was photographed that day Click for a larger image
as well as several months earlier Click for a larger image

In the picture from which the sign was taken, you can see the location of the sign and the bridge itself Click for a larger image

More details about the bridge on the sign in the "Seine bridges in Paris" series Click for sign's details

Translation of the text on the sign:

[An illustration of a ship, symbolizing the symbol of Paris]

History of Paris

Pont Neuf
On May 31, 1578, Henri III laid the first stone of the Pont-Neuf. Interrupted by the civil war, work resumed in 1599 to be completed on July 8, 1606. Designed by Baptiste Androuet du Cerceau and Pierre des Illes, it is the largest bridge in Paris, 278 meters long for its twelve arches; it is also the first to no longer have houses. In 1608, on the second arch from the right bank, a lifting pump was built which supplied water to the Louvre and the Tuileries. Decorated on its façade with a bronze bas-relief representing Christ and the Samaritan woman, it was destroyed in 1813. In 1635, Louis XIll had an equestrian statue of his father erected, facing Place Dauphine, destroyed in 1792, and replaced in 1818 by a new statue of Henry IV by Lemot. In a city where public roads were narrow and open spaces rare, this wide bridge was a godsend for the juggernauts and charlatans who settled there as soon as it opened. The first was Tabarin, whose troupe played pranks in the open air, followed by barkers of all kinds, sellers of Orvietan balm, tooth pullers and other itinerant traders.