Episode 17 - The Final Days and Return of Napoleon

Episode 23 - The Birth of a Legend, Mona Lisa

She is the most famous painting in the world, and everyone has an opinion of her. Are there better paintings in the Louvre? Sure, but she also deserves every bit of fame she has garnered for many reasons. Sadly, because of the chaos that surrounds her, you aren’t able to truly appreciate her the way you might other paintings. Who is the woman behind the most famous painting in the world? Was she the mistress of Giuliano de’ Medici? Leonardo da Vinci in drag? A wealthy woman of the Renaissance and friend to the artists? Or was she a Florentine woman and wife of a wealthy silk & wool merchant?  It is one of the greatest questions in art history, right up there with why she is famous in the first place.  You know this lady as La Joconde or as the Mona Lisa.  In this week's episode, I share the story of the real woman behind the painting and how she came to France.  Check ClaudineHemingway.com for more details.   Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2557975/support]

The History of the Pont Neuf, Yesterday & Today

Pont Neuf wasn’t just the “new bridge,” it was so much more. Sure, it was the first in stone, without houses, the widest and the longest, and the first to have sidewalks in Europe. It was also the first celebrity monument in Paris. People traveled from all over Europe to see it, including Peter the Great. In 1717, Peter arrived in Paris after visiting Amsterdam to collect books, check in on Madame de Maintenon after the death of Louis XIV, and see Pont Neuf for himself.  While people today line up to view Paris from the Eiffel Tower, in the 17th and 18th centuries, the first place people wanted to see was the Pont Neuf. Long before people bought cheap Eiffel Tower keychains that went home with paintings of the Pont Neuf, brass-and-stone miniatures, and hand fans painted with the bridge's image. The bridge ushered in the new modern age and the birth of the great city we know today.  The bridge continues to evolve with art installations by Christo & Jeanne Claude, Kenzo, and JR.  for more info, photos and links visit Claudinehemingway.com Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2557975/support]

Episode 21 - The New Windows of Notre Dame and the Repeated Destruction of History

The debate surrounding the new stained-glass windows of Notre-Dame de Paris has reignited a familiar question: how much of the past should be preserved, and how much should be reimagined?  In this episode, we explore the controversial plans to replace historic windows in the cathedral and place the discussion within a much larger story. From revolutions and restorations to political movements and changing artistic tastes, history is filled with examples of cultural treasures being altered, removed, or destroyed in the name of progress.  Are the new windows a continuation of Notre-Dame’s long history of transformation, or are we witnessing the loss of another irreplaceable piece of the past?  Join us as we examine the latest controversy and the centuries-old struggle between preservation and change. For more info, photos and links visit ClaudineHemingway.com www.claudinehemingway.com/new-paris-in-bleu-blonde-rouge/2026/6/2/episode-21-the-new-windows-of-notre-dame-and-the-repeated-destruction-of-history Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2557975/support]

The Restoration of Delacroix's Capture of Constantinople

The last restored large-format painting by Eugène Delacroix has finally returned to the Pompei red walls of the Salle Mollien at the Musée du Louvre. Since 2019, the Louvre has been restoring the king of the Romantic movement's paintings.  Last week, the fifth and final from the master of color was revealed. The Capture of Constantinople by the Crusaders, April 12, 1204. Before the restoration, the painting was very dark. The architectural background of the city and the Bosphorus has almost disappeared under multiple layers of varnish.   Last restored in 1948, the most recent restoration included strengthening the canvas and its edges, as well as a full cleaning of the pictorial layer.  In this episode, we go into the history of the commission, the actual event of 1204, and what the painting means.  For more, visit ClaudineHemingway.com Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2557975/support]

Episode 19 - The 1887 Sale of the French Crown Jewels

The jewels of the French Crown were never just glittering ornaments. They were symbols of power, legitimacy, dynasty, and empire. For centuries, they adorned kings, queens, emperors, and empresses, surviving revolution, theft, exile, and war. But after the fall of Napoleon III in 1870, the new Republic feared that these treasures represented something even more dangerous: the possibility that France might once again embrace a monarchy. In this episode, we uncover the extraordinary story of the 1887 auction of the French Crown Jewels, a sale that shattered centuries of history in the name of politics. From the bloody aftermath of the Paris Commune to the heated debates inside the National Assembly, the Republic set out to erase the symbols of royal power forever. Historic crowns were melted down, imperial settings destroyed, and priceless jewels scattered across Europe and America into the hands of royalty, Gilded Age millionaires, and legendary jewelers like Tiffany & Co. and Garrard. We’ll step inside the packed Salle des États at the Louvre, once Napoleon III’s throne room, transformed into the most exclusive auction Paris had ever seen. We’ll follow the jewels themselves: the Regent Diamond, the emerald tiara of Madame Royale, Eugénie’s pearl tiara, the dazzling Grand Corsage Bow Brooch, and the infamous reliquary brooch containing Mazarin diamonds once worn by Louis XIV’s court. This episode also traces the incredible journeys of the jewels that survived, the pieces painstakingly recovered by the Louvre over the last century, and the devastating 2025 theft that once again thrust the Crown Jewels into headlines around the world. Some pieces returned home after more than a hundred years in exile. Others may now be lost forever. The 1887 sale was meant to destroy the memory of the monarchy in France. Instead, it became one of the greatest cultural tragedies in French history. Welcome to the story of the jewels France tried to erase. Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2557975/support]