A search notification has been started. Where is the statue of Voltaire, enthroned since 1962, in the Place Honoré-Champion in the 6th arrondissement of Paris? Léon-Ernest Druvier’s work was last viewed on August 17, 2020. Like Colbert, Cuvier, and Gallieni, the philosopher of the Enlightenment then did not shy away from attacks on these characters. colonial era. Then the statue of Voltaire was covered with red paint with the inscription:NTM:“for”crush your mother“. The municipality then took it back.to clean it“.
Since then, no one has seen the shadow of the Enlightener Man. Two years later, the base is still empty. Only the granite square is left, on which is engraved in capital letters:VOLTER:“.
Absence, which was especially noticed by the permanent secretary of the French Academy, Hélène Carrère d’Encos. “It is scandalous that this statue of a man of the French Academy, made by a sculptor of the Academy of Fine Arts, is no longer in place, he raged at LCI. If we start removing the jinn, where should we go?»
Asked Le Figaro, he accuses the Paris municipality of having no intention of putting it back in its place after restoring it. The historian condemnsthis systematic policy of demolishing statues“whose critics judge”An 18th century man passionate about the Western world today“.
What can you blame Voltaire for?
What can be blamed Enlightenment philosopher, author Tolerance Agreement and: Philosophical letters ? “If I fell to the ground, it’s Voltaire’s fault” sing the children in Les Miserables. For an academic, a philosopher would be considered politically incorrect, punished, and then removed from the public domain. “He wasn’t inclusive enough“, especially in his works about the Muslim world. “But it doesn’t make sense he’s storming. No one was pro-Third World back then.»
Since 2020, what has happened to the statue of the former immortal, real name Francois-Marie Arrouet, who was elected in 1746 as the 33rd president of the French Academy? And what is his future like?
The statue has been eroded by rain and paint
Contacted Le Figaro, the City Hall of Paris denies the accusations of Hélène Carrère d’Encose. “We obviously do not want to deprive the capital of the statue of Voltaire, retorts Karen Taib, heritage assistant. The opposite. But the statue is too fragile to return to its original place.»
In 2020, the stone statue, which dates from 1962, the bronze original was cast in 1942, was entrusted to CNAP, the National Center for Plastic Arts.to make a health diagnosis“. Under the Ministry of Culture, the CNAP, which is among others responsible for the restoration of the works, cleaned and then fixed the crumbling stone, particularly at the level of the nose. Voltaire’s medical examination continues, but it is not going as planned. Restorers conclude that the stone is too fragile.”cleaning it up“.
“It is for the preservation of the case that we have decided that it will not return to its original place, piece by Karen Tayeb. It will no longer support rain or other paint splashes.Then follows the search for a place to store the fragile statue of Voltaire, which has sensibly awaited its fate for two years on the grounds of the CNAP in Boulogne-Billancourt. “We needed a public place that was accessible, visible from the street and sheltered from bad weather.»
And “In the 6th district, the mayor of the 6th district, Jean-Pierre Lecoq, claims. The place where the French Revolution and Voltaire were born”. “We first imagined that we would put it in the Cordelier Convent, but access was limited. Then we thought of the Quai Malaquais, in front of the Institut de France, or on the banks of the Seine, but the statue had to be protected. Another option is the Quai Voltaire, which lives up to its name. Again the same problem, the statue must be protected from bad weather. This is how the choice fell on the former Faculty of Medicine, the current headquarters of Paris-Cite University not far from the Odeon.
Find shelter for Voltaire
Leaving the banks of the Seine, Voltaire would be able to place himself at 12 rue de l’École de médecine, with a guarded gate, under powerful stone arches.
“This place makes no sense critic Helen Carre d’Encos. Voltaire has nothing to do with medicine, he was a member of the French Academy, and his sculptor was a member of the Academy of Fine Arts.“Karen Taib of the Paris Municipality gives in”.this is not necessarily the ideal location“, but”this allows the city to keep the statue“, the latter belongs not to the capital, but to the state.
Jean-Pierre Lecoq says it himself “I’m willing to reopen the file if necessary.” The city councilor is not opposed to storing the Voltaire in the docks, even if it means making a bronze replica of it, allowing it to be restored to its original 1885 state, sculpted by Joseph-Michel Caille.
Meanwhile, where is Voltaire hiding? According to the City of Paris, in the CNAP area it is still well protected from the rain, but also from the view. The latter did not respond to our requests, nor did the Ministry of Culture, which “doesn’t have enough answers on the topic“. The municipality of Paris resorts to administrative delays, justifying such a period. Square Honoré-Champion’s base will remain empty forever. Will the philosopher finally be crowned above the Seine or take refuge in the ancient medical faculty? Can Montesquieu take Voltaire’s place? The idea is considered because the father From the spirit of the laws also has a statue of him behind the author’s statue Sincerely… but without his head, which fell after the previous degradation.
Source: Le Figaro
