non monks of the
enormous Abbaye de Cluny in 1330 atop the ruins of old Roman baths.
Remnants of these ancient baths can still be found on the side of the
building. Reconstructed into its current form in 1510 the monastery is
no longer active, its medieval architecture put to use in 1842 as the
perfect showcase for the National Museum of the Middle Ages. Inside the
museum reside many priceless treasures, jewelry, paintings, sculptures,
stained-glass windows, rugs and other ancient objects. The Notre-Dame
gallery houses the 21 enormous statues of the Kings of Isreal sculpted
around 1210 to adorn the west façade of Notre Dame. The statues
were decapitated as a symbol of royal power during the French
Revolution. Incredibly, the heads were not recovered until 1977,
unearthed during an urban excavation near the Opera. They have since
been reunited with their original bodies. A magnificent collection of
stained-glass windows belonging originally to Saint-Chapelle and the
Basicila of Saint-Denis can be admired up-close, something not possible
in the original buildings. Arguably the museum’s most celebrated
masterpiece though is the Dame à la Licorne tapestry,
discovered
quite by accident by the writer Georges Sand in the Château de
Boussac in 1844. Protected during five centuries the tapestry has kept
its vibrant colours and its original quality. The tapestry is displayed
under filtered light in chambre 13 along with five others dedicated to
the senses. A replica of an authentic medieval garden can also be
found outside the museum.
