Leon Noel division 20

Marie-Genevieve Gamarchon division 2

Georges Rodenbach division 15

Pierre Gareau division 10

Maas division 7

Victimes des révolutions (Mur des Fédérés), again

I first published a few of these images along with their story in May of 2008. I plan to republish them at least once a year. They are powerful, evocative and fragments of not only French history but also remnants of who we are to each other. I put them here since so very few of the more than a million tourists who visit Pere Lachaise very year bother to visit -- or even know about this incredible sculpture.

Anyway, here's the slideshow, followed by all the images as well.

Feel free to right-click or control-click on any of the images below, download them, use them as you will -- please just give me the credit for taking them.

Frederic Chopin division 11

Francois Raspail division 18

Thomas Couture division 4

Edmond About division 36

Guillaume-Lagrange division 29 "the dragoon"

Legay division 7 Pere Lachaise

Boselli division 5 Pere Lachaise

Constant Demion division 1 at Pere Lachaise

Felix Faure division 4 at Pere Lachaise

Guillaume Dubufe division 10 at Pere Lachaise

Paul Baudry division 4 Pere Lachaise

Falguiere division 4 Pere Lachaise

Marcel Marceau's new headstone is in place - Pere Lachaise div. 21

If you're a fan of this great mime artist you know that he passed out of this life in September of 2007. Until recently his grave in division 21 had no stone, just a mound of dirt covered with flowers and remembrances.

Obviously that's all changed.

Jacob Robles divsion 7 Pere Lachaise

Courreges divsion 19 Pere Lachaise

Square du Pere Lachaise

Some time back I came across an old postcard of Paris, a photograph of place called "Square du Pere Lachaise." It focused on a statue of an elderly couple entitled "Les Declin," I believe. The square is long gone as is the statue (sadly), but I often wondered where it was located. The perspective of the photograph provided few clues.

I found my answer through the sheerest of coincidences.

My wife and I had gotten turned around coming out of the no. 9 Metro at the Grand Boulevards stop and we ended up in, of all places, the Passages Jouffroy. After strolling through this incredible space we came across a vendor of old postcards. I have in recent years fallen into the habit of browsing such things looking for the odd postcard of Paris cemeteries. Well, this place was very well-organized -- they seemed to have everything arranged in binders which they would pull out of a huge bookcase -- and after browsing for a minutes I found what I was looking for. (photo: Marthe Swincinska, in division 95.)

Square Pere Lachaise -- not one but two different perspectives, in fact, one of which incorporated the statue! It is fairly clear now that the Square was located where the Jardin du Samuel Champlain is today, that is along Avenue Gambetta just up from the Pere Lachaise Metro stop.

I hope to scan in the cards after I return to the US next month.

Casereau divison 6 Pere Lachaise

Leon Philippe Beclard division 4 Pere Lachaise

Jean-Sebastien Gourlot division 11 Pere Lachaise

A reproduction of this marker is actually in the Carnavalet Museum:

Fernand Arbelot division 11 Pere Lachaise

Philippe Elie Le Royer division 89 Pere Lachasise