1 > We finally (finally) develop a taste for history and geography
At first glance, an exhibition about old 18th-century maps doesn't necessarily sell dreams. And yet, that is precisely the tour de force achieved by the Archives nationales (Paris Centre). The whole first part of the installation focuses on the epic that made the famous map possible. In the first rooms, you can measure the distance covered by observing the first geometric surveys made by hand by the scientists of the time. The scales are approximate, the heights and reliefs are not yet exact, and the names of some emblematic places in our country simply are not the same!
The retrospective clearly shows how all these approximations would push the successive monarchs (Louis XIV, Louis XV and Napoleon Bonaparte) to undertake a precise mapping of the territory. Many scholars were mobilised for the project, as well as four generations of Cassini, the eldest of whom, Jean-Dominique, became the very first director of the Paris Observatory in 1667.
2 > We marvel at a masterpiece in its own right
The highlight of the show is obviously the map. Its proportions being gargantuan, it is displayed in a room of its own. Made up of 181 sheets joined together, it measures 12 metres high by 11 metres wide. For lack of space, the Archives nationales split it in two and displayed it on two facing walls.
Entirely hand-made, the map is a true jewel that resembles a painting more than a geographical document. Every detail (woods, marshes, village, chapel, etc.) has been drawn. Nevertheless, it remains extremely precise, thanks to a revolutionary technique: triangulation. This allows distances to be measured by connecting fixed points, such as towers, church steeples or even hills. These symbols, which can be found on the map, are moreover labelled on a huge panel at the entrance to the room. Enough to make understanding easier.
3 > We have fun exploring eighteenth-century France
The exhibition may be above all educational, but it is none the less playful. There is a certain pleasure in finding your address, your village of origin or your favourite holiday spot on this map dating from 1815. The boldest try to do so directly on the life-size map; the others turn to one of the two touch tablets at our disposal. On these, you can navigate the map in the manner of Google Maps, so as to find what you are looking for more easily.
The Cassini map is also a witness to a bygone era. It is a kind of photograph of the geography of our country at the end of the 18th and the beginning of the 19th century. The most striking example is undoubtedly Paris. In 1815 (the date of its completion), the limits of the capital were far from being the same as those we know today. Charonne (11th arr.), Javel (15th arr.), Passy (16th arr.) or Belleville (20th arr.) are so many villages on the outskirts, which had not yet been fully absorbed by the city. The same goes for Nice, whose canton simply was not part of French territory!
Adrien D. H.
The extra info
The map can be consulted online free of charge on the government website. To discover it, click here!