7 .
P A N T H É O N
PLACE DU PANTHÉON
A grandiose building . Soufflot ’ s ambition was
to outdo the churches of St . Peter ' s in Rome
and St . Paul ’ s in London . The monumental
peristyle was inspired by the Pantheon
commissioned by Agrippa in Rome .
A decorative programme . From 1874 onwards ,
the sanctuary was decorated with paintings
on canvas marouflé illustrating the life of
Saint Geneviève and the epic story of the
beginnings of both Christianity and the
monarchy in France .
The crypt . Visit the tombs of the eminent
personalities interred in the crypt who shaped
France ' s national identity . A permanent
exhibition gives details about the lives and
works of those who are buried here , from
Voltaire and Rousseau to Alexandre Dumas .
Foucault ’ s pendulum . First installed in 1851
and removed then reinstalled in 1995 , this
device demonstrated the Earth ' s rotation .