Arc de Triomphe

Arc de Triomphe

The Louvre

Looking up the small Pyramid of The Louvre

Outside Gare St-Lazare Station

Notre-Dame Cathedral, Paris

Notre-Dame Cathedral, Paris

The 3 west portals of the Cathedral are examples of early Gothic art.
Sculpted between 1200 and 1240, they depict scenes from the life of the Virgin Mary, the Last Judgment, and scenes from the life of St. Anne (the Virgin Mary's mother)

The tympanum features the Coronation of the Virgin, with an angel crowning Mary while Christ blesses her and gives her a scepter.
The top lintel depicts the Death of the Virgin - Mary lies on her death bed surrounded by Jesus and the Twelve Apostles. Two angels at her head and feet lift up her up to Heaven.

The bottom lintel has 3 Old Testament prophets (left) and three Old Testament kings (right), all holding scrolls representing prophecies of Christ.
The archivolts are populated by the Heavenly Court (angels, patriarchs, kings, prophets).
The trumeau is a standing statue of the Virgin and Child, with the pedestal below carved with scenes of the temptation and fall of Adam and Eve.

The tympanum - Christ displays his wounds, flanked by angels with instruments of the Passion (spear and cross).
On the left and right are kneeling figures of the Virgin Mary and St. John, who were present at the crucifixion.
The top lintel - Weighing of Souls by the Archangel Michael, with a furry Devil's interference. On the left are the Redeemed people, on the right are the Damned

Lower Lintel :
Resurrection of the Dead
At the sound of the angels' trumpets, the dead emerge from their tombs on their own power, fully enfleshed, calm, and poised.
Trumeau : Christ teaching, with the Liberal Arts beneath his feet.
Archivolts : feature the Heavenly Court (angels, patriarchs, prophets, Church doctors, martyrs and virgins)

The tympanum shows the Virgin and Child on a throne, accompanied by two censing angels, a bishop and his assistant, and a king.
The upper lintel depicts scenes from the advent of Christ (Annunciation, Nativity, Magi, etc.) and the lower lintel tells the stories of Anne and Joachim and Mary and Joseph.

The Gothic nave, looking east towards the altar

The Altar

The Gothic nave, looking east towards the altar

The west rose window at Notre Dame dates from about 1220. The interior view of its colorful medieval glass is blocked by the organ.
The main theme of the west rose is human life