This story has been gleaning some recent attention, and since it deals with Paris and WWII, I thought I would jump in on the action. It has to do with a Parisian apartment on the Right Bank near the Opéra Garnier (9th Arrondissement) that was abandoned during the Nazi occupation when its owner, one Madame de Florian, fled to Vichy. If that doesn't have my name written all over it, well, I don't know what does!
Apparently, after the war she never returned but paid on the property until her death in 2010. When an auctioneer entered the apartment, he found a treasure trove. The apartment, although covered in a thick layer of dust, was like a piece of history frozen in time.
Apparently, after the war she never returned but paid on the property until her death in 2010. When an auctioneer entered the apartment, he found a treasure trove. The apartment, although covered in a thick layer of dust, was like a piece of history frozen in time.
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| The de Florian Apartment - just as it was in 1942 photo credit: © Getty Images |
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| Gorgeous Vanity in Mme. de Florian's Apartment photo credit: © Getty Images |
Apparently, Madame Marthe de Florian left this lovely apartment to her granddaughter, also known as Madame de Florian. The granddaughter fled Paris during WWII and so the apartment lay dormant for over 70 years. When Madame de Florian passed away in 2010, events were set in motion that would ultimately lead to the apartment's discovery.
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| Any apartment with a stuffed ostrich is cool in my book! photo credit: © Getty Images |
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| Gorgeous furniture - I love the embroidered chairs photo credit: © Getty Images |
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| If these walls could talk... photo credit: © Getty Images |
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| photo credit: © Getty Images |
Born on 9 September 1864, the beautiful Madame Marthe de Florian (whose birth name was Mathilde Héloïse Beaugiron) originally owned the apartment and used it to entertain special male guests. During La Belle Époque, Marthe was a famed actress and demimondaine (courtesan) known for having a bevy of famous lovers that include Georges Clemenceau (before he was the 72nd Prime Minister of France), Pierre Waldeck-Rousseau (68th Prime Minister of France), Paul Deschanel (11th President of France), Gaston Doumergue (13th President of France), and the Italian artist Giovanni Boldini. The UK's Daily Mail reports that there are even passionate love letters tied in silk ribbon within the apartment - oh how I would love to read them!
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| Giovanni Boldini at Work |
The painting below was discovered in the apartment and is an original work of renowned portraitist Giovanni Boldini. It is a portrait of Marthe de Florian at age 24. The painting was authenticated by a hand-written love note from Boldini (found in the apartment), as well as a passage in a book by Boldini's wife that referenced the painting. I cannot help but wonder what that passage said! Although he resided in Paris during the Impressionist Era (and one can certainly see the influence of the Impressionists in his painting) he was not an Impressionist. Boldini was a one of a kind, dubbed "the Master of Swish" because of the swishing brushstrokes that graced his paintings. He painted the rich and famous, making quite a respectable name for himself.
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| Portrait of Madame de Florian by Giovanni Boldini, 1898 photo credit: © Getty Images |
But don't get any ideas about purchasing the newly discovered painting. Alas, someone beat you to it. And unless you have hit the lottery recently, you couldn't afford it anyway (it sold for €2.1 million making it the highest selling Boldini, well, ever).
I cannot begin to imagine what it must have been like to discover this apartment. As a historian, I would give anything to have the opportunity to explore its historical treasures. I have not uncovered any information that states what the apartment's future holds...only that it is still in the family estate. I sincerely hope they do not sell it off bit by bit. That would be a travesty.
I cannot begin to imagine what it must have been like to discover this apartment. As a historian, I would give anything to have the opportunity to explore its historical treasures. I have not uncovered any information that states what the apartment's future holds...only that it is still in the family estate. I sincerely hope they do not sell it off bit by bit. That would be a travesty.
Comments
Ruth.
Como professora de história eu também queria adentrar cada cantinho para saber como era a vida ali.
Thanks
Misch