Square · France · Restored

Place des Vosges

The Place des Vosges is a planned, enclosed royal square in the Marais of Paris, begun under Henry IV and completed in 1612. It is bounded on all sides by uniform red-brick and pale stone townhouses with ground-floor arcades and steep slate roofs, and its centre is a public square (Square Louis‑XIII) of lawns, paths, fountains and clipped lindens.

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Photograph via Wikimedia Commons

First raised

1605

Its prime

1612

Today

Restored

As it stood in 1612

What Place des Vosges looked like in its prime.

Perfect nearly-square plan (about 140 × 140 m) ringed by two-storey red-brick façades with white limestone quoins and uniform ground-floor vaulted arcades on square pillars. Very steep blue-grey slate roofs with small-paned dormers sit above cornices; two taller pavilions (north and south) break the roofline and contain triple-arched passages. The centre is a flat planted garden with gravel paths, clipped rows of lindens and circular stone fountains and a central monument.

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8 places to explore in 1612.

The record describes 8 distinct spots at Place des Vosges, including 5 interiors: north vaulted gallery under the arcades, pavilion du roi triple-arch passage (south side), pavilion de la reine archway (north side) and more. Create your own photoreal reconstruction and explore every one, more scenes means more photos, more angles and more of the immersive experience.

Central fountain and lawns (Square Louis‑XIII)North vaulted gallery under the arcadesPavilion du Roi triple-arch passage (south side)Pavilion de la Reine archway (north side)View along an arcade toward a corner pavilionEntrance of No. 6 (future Maison de Victor Hugo)Edge of the square beneath clipped lindensApproach from Rue de Birague through arcade

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