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Pantheon Review

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Panthéon

Address: Pl. du Panthéon, The Quartier Latin, Paris | Map It
Phone: 01-44-32-18-00
pantheon.monuments-nationaux.fr/en/

Category: Memorials/Monuments
Location: The Quartier Latin

Write a review | Avg. member rating: 3.0/5

Fodor's Review:

Rome has St. Peter's, London has St. Paul's, and Paris has the Panthéon, whose enormous dome dominates the Left Bank. Built as a church, it has long been the resting place of a virtual who's who of France's cultural and political elite, including Voltaire, Zola, Dumas, Victor Hugo, Rousseau, and Marie Curie. Begun in 1764, the building was almost complete when the French Revolution erupted. By then, architect Jacques-German Soufflot had died, supposedly from worrying that the dome would collapse. He needn't have fretted: the dome is so perfect that Foucault used this space to test his famous pendulum to prove the rotation of the earth. The best view is had from outside, however, as the vast neoclassical interior looks more like an abandoned wine cellar than a hallowed burial ground. It's entirely empty except for the 19th-century murals lining the walls and a model of Foucault's pendulum hanging from the center of the dome. The famous residents are in the crypt. There is little info in English—and none on the people buried here, so if you're a history buff, do your homework before you come.

Cost: EUR 7.50
Open: Apr.-Sept., daily 10-6:30; Oct.-Mar., daily 10-6
Metro: Cardinal Lemoine; RER: Luxembourg

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Member Reviews and Ratings

Reviewed by bachslunch from US on 11/9/08
Big domed building, of architectural interest but really not a whole lot to see. Has some murals and other detail work, a decent view, and a crypt with some of France's most famous people buried there: Voltaire, Hugo, Braille, Dumas, Rousseau, Zola, Mme. Curie. A bit overpriced for what it is.