Les oiseaux du Roi Soleil à la Ménagerie de Versailles, ou l’art d’exposer l’animal entre volières, cours et jardins par Emmanuel LURIN – Archives du Calvados
The Sun King’s birds at the Versailles menagerie, or the art of exhibiting animals in aviaries, courts and gardens
The Palace of Versailles menagerie marks an important turning point in the history of zoological parks in Europe, rendered all the more interesting due to its juxtaposition with landscape history, representations of nature and the multifaceted art of gardens. Created in the early 1660s for the young King Louis XIV, this building devoted to leisure and boasting seven radiating planted courtyards immediately surprised visitors by its surface, its artistic magnificence, the great variety of its living collections and the originality of the visitor experience. In the 1680s, this creation inspired many imitations, not only throughout France, but also in Europe, in particular among German courts, which contributed considerably to the dissemination of the notion of ‘menagerie’. Yet, what indeed was the great novelty of this princely establishment? Why were the number of birds and the great diversity of species far more important than those of other animal families? This conference will shed light on the absolutely central role of birds in the establishment, under Louis XIV, of a major collection of rare animals at Versailles. It will confirm the often debated, occasionally refuted, for rarely documented, presence of a large population of ‘exotic’ birds, such as hummingbirds and birds of paradise. Finally, it will highlight the landscaped dimension of the planted courtyards, specifically designed for visitors’ pleasure and curiosity: meticulously designed, adorned with large ponds, planted with trees and populated by birds, these enclosures were also designed for walking visitors, who could enjoy a perfectly clear, generous and orderly image of the natural world, when dominated and gardened by man.
Emmanuel Lurin
Emmanuel Lurin is an associate professor in history of art at the Sorbonne University, Faculty of Letters, and member of the André Chastel centre (UMR – Joint Research Unit 8150). An École Normale graduate and qualified history professor, specialising in Renaissance art since his thesis, he works on the relationships between ancient knowledge and artistic creation, the art of print making, architecture and gardens in France (16th-17th century). Since 2019, he co-directs a research programme, entitled PuNaCa (Putting Nature in a Cage: an interdisciplinary research program on aviaries).