In 1972 the large allegory of the Tiber River brought to France by Napoleon once sat in the Cour du Sphinx where it was when my grandfather snapped this photo. It has since been moved to the end of the apartments of the queen mother Anne of Austria with the Seine flowing at his back.
Tiber dates back to the 1st century and was discovered in Rome in 1512 with its mirrored stature of the Nile. Moved to the papal collection in Rome following the discovery until Napoleon made his own discovery and wanted the two statues taken back to France.
In 1797 the Treaty of Tolentino, an agreement between the Papal State and the French Republic, the statues were transferred to the Musée Napoleon, what is now known as the Musée du Louvre. Following the defeat and removal of Napoleon in 1815, the Nile was returned to the Vatican, but Tiber was given as a gift from Pope Pius VII to the now King Louis XVIII and has remained in the Louvre until today.
The statue depicts the allegory of the Tiber holding an oar for navigation and in his right hand a cornucopia which symbolizes the nourishing of the river. Just below him on the left are the twins Romulus and Remus shown being breastfed by a she wolf, the symbol of the city of Rome. One of the most beautiful things of Paris is that all though years can pass, there are things that remain the same.
The building, bridges and art can span years and centuries but the people like the river keeps flowing and passing with time. I love the little gal in the lower left with her stripe shirt looking up at a statue. Maybe at this moment she fell in love with art. Also apparently the Louvre had a little more liberal rule of touching the statues with a guard in his snazzy uniform looking on.
Currently this entire area is closed off and under renovation, although they haven’t started as I peek through the door everyday to see if they are working.