The Archangel

That would be the Archangel Michael, slayer of dragons, who, according to legend, appeared to St. Aubert, a French bishop, in the 8th century and ordered him to build a church on a rocky islet off the coast of Normandy. Aubert dillied and dallied and ignored the angel's instruction until, again according to legend, Archangel Michael burned a hole in the bishop's skull with his finger!

Flash forward some 1300 years, and you find yourself today gaping at what has evolved from that humble 9th century place of worship to one of the World Heritage Site's great monuments, Le Mont-Saint-Michel, where we spent a couple of days this past weekend. Between the final French presidential elections on Sunday and the big May 8th holiday on Tuesday (honoring the end of WWII) we were all happy to escape Paris. The grey skies and rain showers followed us all the way but didn't slow us down one bit.

The unique location of the site can best be appreciated from high up on the island, looking down onto the old tidal causeway on the left -- covered at high tide and revealed at low tide -- and the adjacent raised roadway along which today's shuttle buses ferry the more than 3 million tourists who visit each year.

Over the centuries the coastal flats have changed dramatically. Polderisation to create pastures has increased sediments and silting, to the point that today, a huge government project involving a hydraulic dam and the Couesnon river is underway to remove the accumulated silt and to make Mont-Saint-Michel a true island again. Presumably farmers will be compensated for the salt marsh pastures they will lose, which probably means that one of the best known products of these marshes -- salt marsh lamb (agneau de pré-salé) -- will be a little harder to find! The flavor, color and texture of this lamb is like no other, and was a favorite item on the dinner menu at our hotel (yum!)

Once you get onto the island itself, the narrow, winding streets around the base are lined with wonderful old buildings. Formerly the homes and businesses of medieval guilds and families, they now host the usual flashy gift shops, cafés, restaurants as well as a few hotels. There are about 40 permanent residents, and I would imagine they all flee at the height of the summer season!

Luckily for us, the grey skies and the elections kept the numbers of visitors reasonably manageable and, led by our three intrepid adventurers, gave us a chance to explore.

A relic of the Hundred Years War -- when the English tried repeatedly to seize the island -- this wrought iron bombard is all that is left of their final failed siege in the early 1420s. By this time, Benedictine monks had taken over the monastery and established it as a place of pilgrimage, as well as being clearly an impregnable stronghold.

Meanwhile, a small maritime museum on the main street held rapt interest...

... with this display of little model boats from centuries ago.

Other museums offered glimpses of  "days of yore", including dashing knights in gleaming armor...

...and at something called an Archeoscope -- a sort of "son-et-lumiere" show in a small theatre -- this beautiful model of Mont-Saint-Michel floated up out of a bed of water.

All these diversions served a useful purpose in getting us (especially me!) up the mountain to the Abbey, without realizing quite how much we were climbing. I made it a point not to count the number of steps, for fear of giving up halfway.

Always, the brooding presence of the Abbey itself was above us, its buildings wrapped around the pyramidal shape of the island. It's a remarkable work of architecture, two blocks of 3-storey buildings perched on the steep rocky slope. And all somehow achieved in the 13th century!

I plodded along doggedly, up one final, long flight of stone stairs...

...keeping my eyes ever upward to the spire with the Archangel standing on top...

...passing some nuns on their way down, and a troop of boy scouts unfurling their flag for their march down...

...until I finally got up to the terrace from where you enter the Abbey. (Younger legs arrived ahead of me and waited patiently!)

Any leg fatigue vanishes as soon as you walk inside the Abbey Church. Built in the early decades of the year 1000 and known as the "Merveille" ("Marvel" or "Miracle"), it sits almost magically on top of the rock, 80 meters above sea level, on a platform 80 meters long. An incredible feat just to get the materials up there, let alone create these soaring columns and arches reaching up to heaven.

Our French guide, Christian, was also a miracle. He spoke in such clear and measured tones, mixed with much humor, that we were able to follow along pretty well.

He also managed to hold the attention of the younger members of the group, who being by now completely bilingual, understood every word!

Leaving the Abbey Church, we descended down a short level to the cloisters, wrapped around a small central garden.

 A place of prayer and meditation, the double row of small columns, slightly out of line, are spaced to allow for a slow and measured pace.

Another short set of stairs down found us in the Refectory, an equally stunning space with its barrel-vaulted wooden ceiling and its long tables and benches, where the monks took their meals in silence. Even though it was a prominent religious community, there were just 40 monks who were resident up until the time of the Revolution.

The next level down brought us to the Scriptorum, where the monks studied their texts, and painstakingly worked at their manuscripts. During the French Revolution these priceless documents were, happily, spirited away and can now be seen in a museum in nearby Avranches. The Abbey itself was converted into a prison by the Republican Regime until 1863 when it once more became a Monastery. In 1874 it was declared a historic monument, and has been listed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO since 1979.

When seen today from a distance, the throngs of people and the tourist shops vanish into the misty grey skies, and Le Mont-Saint-Michel stands alone, serene and majestic -- a great iconic presence, an image of Paradise to believers, and a testament to the skills of an earlier time. A "Merveille" indeed!

À bientôt, and thanks to Matthew for many of these photographs!

Art, Science and the Grace of God

For the past two weeks, the whole of France has been pummelled day after day with soaking rain and high winds. "April in Paris" on steroids. Instead of strolling in the Luxembourg Gardens with friend Anneke visiting from Pt. Reyes Station, we headed instead to the Marmottan Museum, where the first retrospective of works by Berthe Morisot in 50 years is drawing appeciative audiences.

One of the few 19th century women to achieve recognition as a painter, Berthe Morisot was Edouard Manet's favorite model, appearing in many of his works. After marrying his brother, she settled down to producing an impressive body of work, exhibiting alongside Monet, Degas, Renoir, Pissarro and other Impressionist artists.

Sometimes dismissed as a "painter of women" I found her canvases not only captured the grace and femininity of women going about their daily lives, but also stood up strongly with her male counterparts. I especially liked this painting of a young woman watering the plants on her terrace, with the bulky urban city in the background.

On another recent rainy day, Matthew and I headed back to Idem, the last remaining lithographic printing studio in Paris. We were here about a year ago, but still the sight of this vast, skylit studio just stops you in your tracks.

We were here this time to visit our friend, the artist Edward Koren, who is "in residence" at Idem for a few weeks, creating lithographs for the first time in his life, and loving every minute.

He took some time to show us the various tools available, a big selection of lithographic pencils...

...or, if you prefer, you can use lithographic ink...

 ...which is what Ed is doing on this stone, being very careful to protect the stone from being contaminated by contact with his hand.

Meanwhile, over at one of the legendary 19th century lithographic presses, Pierre is readying the paper to continue working on Ed's first print, a group of wonderful Koren creatures with antlers and sparkly eyes, riding bicycles!

 The stone itself sits in the well of the press, waiting for the big rollers and the smaller inked rollers to do their scientific as well as artistic magic.

And so they do! The first print comes off and is tacked up on the wall for close scrutiny by the artist and the master printers...

This first one has been printed with blue/black ink. Perhaps now a touch of yellow is needed in the background, but which shade...and how much...?

Christian, the color specialist, works with Ed and together they make their selection. A careful layering is painted onto the small rollers...

...and the new version comes rolling off the press and is tacked up on the wall. Just the subtle addition of the yellow softens the background, but sharpens the whiteness of the eyes and the bicycle wheels. Magnificent!

Speaking of bicycles, a couple of weeks ago, when the sun was shining, we took a Velib bike ride through the 5th arrondissement and were pulled up short by this imposing building set back from the road and covering a few acres. A sign told us it is the Val-de-Grace, a military hospital, medical school, museum and church, the last two of which one could visit. We quickly made a note to return soon.

Yesterday, under grey, threatening skies, we took the bus over just before the heavens opened and found ourselves inside a remarkable world of art, medical science and God! 

 Originally a Benedictine Convent, the courtyard of the old abbey building still retains the cloistered walkway running around the formal garden. Today, it houses an extraordinary museum of French army medicine.

In one room, we gazed in wonder at medical equipment from bygone years  collected by a Monsieur François Debat, who pursued a life-long passion for the history of medicine, from this early microscope, a work of art in itself...

... to some fierce-looking surgical saws...

...beautiful glass flasks...

...portable pharmacies, complete with drawers and jars, powders and potions...

...and wild looking syringes!

There was even a life-size apothecary's shop, complete with exquisite ceramic jars and giant mortars and pestles.

 Upstairs, we wandered through rooms that laid out beautifully the history of medicine in the French army. This painting shows an early field hospital during the Battle of Maastricht in 1747.

Other displays show students learning the art of foot anatomy and had some pretty explicit examples of fractured legs as well!

Some science fiction contraptions made you shiver to even think what injury this "helmet" might be attempting to heal...

...whilst others remained just plain mysterious. This one has something to do with stomach surgery, but as the box was closed tight, there was no way to know what the "complementaire" equipment might be!


Eventually, we made our way to the Church of the Val-de-Grace, which anchors the whole complex of buildings, sitting serenely in the centre. Built by order of Queen Anne of Austria (wife of Louis XIII), it was her way of thanking God for the birth of her son (who became Louis XIV) after 23 years of childless marriage, and at the age of 37! A miracle in 1638. The old Benedictine abbey was taken over and architects François Mansart and Jacques Lemercier went to work.  The result is considered by some to be the finest example of baroque architecture in Paris. Louis XIV himself, at age 7, apparently laid the cornerstone.

Certainly when you walk inside the church, the scale alone makes you stop and gape, with its soaring ceiling and long, long apse. Then you slowly start to take in the details. The baldaquin, the canopy over the altar, is framed by twirled columns of marble, decorated with foliage from ivy and ferns to sheaths of wheat. The whole thing is incredibly ornate, even though it is supposed to represent the humble stable where Jesus was born!

A small sign told us that the original altar and baldaquin were destroyed during the French Revolution. An exact replica was built in the 19th century to restore the church to its former glory.

Looking up, the domed ceiling features an elaborate frescoe with Anne, and her patron, Saint Anne, and hosts of angels and adoring members of the populace. And below, the tiled floor is covered with fleur de lys, and the initials A and L for Anne and Louis.

The church also boasts a fine looking organ and offers free recitals every month.

At the far end of this extensive baroque complex sits the new hospital, built in the 1970s. It provides care to military personnel and also to anyone with health coverage under the French social security system. It is apparently the hospital of choice for leaders in the French government.  No need to worry there about those scary surgical saws! Now, if we could just persuade Saint Anne to do something about this rain.....

À bientôt!