Underfoot in Paris

While wandering the streets of Paris, keeping an eye on what's underfoot is crucial to avoid the presents left by the impressive canine population—which, incidentally, is oftentimes dressed more fashionably than I during chillier weather. Watching where you step in Paris serves more purpose than simply avoiding these delightful gifts, though—across Paris, scattered medallions pepper the city sidewalks. My favorites are the Arago series, a set of around 130 medallions placed along the Paris Meridian. The set is named for François Arago, the astronomer who accurately calculated the line, which for many years rivaled the Greenwich Meridian for internationally-recognized status as the prime meridian.  My first year in Paris, I was quite excited to discover not just one, but two Arago medallions right by my house in the Cité U! That meant I lived alongside a historically-important meridian, which I thought was pretty cool.

Lately, I’ve discovered another set of medallions with an interesting story behind them. Everyone who knows Paris knows about the Seine—but have you ever heard of la Bièvre? This was a second river, one that used to run through the 13th and fifth arrondissements and ultimately fed into the Seine. However, since 1912, the river has been covered up within the city, as it became horribly polluted and unsanitary as the city industrialized during the 1800s.
In 2001, a project was proposed to uncover and restore the river in a few sites in Paris. However, when the project outline was presented with its budget, which was estimated at over 100 million euro, the French population reconsidered the plan. The architect Benoît Jullien proposed another idea, and in 2008 a set of medallions and markers were placed around Paris to mark the path of la Bièvre. So far, I’ve spotted markers both along the path of the river as it stands today, and also along paths where it used to lead, including to a chic neighborhood called Le Marais and along the bras unique. Paris is not only rich in history readily apparent on the streets, but also in stories hidden below your feet.