Because of our love of Paris, every eurotrip begins and ends with L' Aeroport Charles de Gaulle, allowing us extra days to enjoy the city we love above all others. And over the past ten years, we've gotten to know the city well, at least the first twelve arrondissements, but of all the treasures we've found in the City of Light, none brings more joy than a little shop on Rue du Bac called Deyrolle. Founded in 1831, Deyrolle is an emporium of natural history with collections of insects and shells, stuffed animals of all kinds, natural curiosities and educational materials for teaching natural sciences.
The main store of Deyrolle is on the second floor, accessed from this rather small, simple yet exotic store front on Rue de Bac.
The street level entry way is now a gardening store, but the stair case leads to the real treasures, the natural history collections found on the second floor
This is a sample of the Easter 2009 window display...cute, busy, seasonal, very attractive, and just plan fun.
This is the view from the top of the stairs, the view that welcomes children of all ages (I include myself in that group, still a child).
The next room is case after case of insects, birds, snakes, sea creatures, you name it, it's part of the Deyrolle collection. Of course, they throw in the occasional donkey, just for the fun of it.
An example of a typical Deyrolle case....dozens of variation of the same species, all perfectly perserved and mounted, and all for sale with their own smaller cases.
Deyrolle also features prepared small collections for sale, but you can also pick out specimens to design your own collection box/frame.
There are dozens and dozens of bird cases, species from all over the world.
Have you ever seen the complete exoskeleton of a lobster, mounted so you can see every distinct part? They do the same with skeletons of many fish, snakes, mammals, etc.
Another room, more astounding collections.
Another look at the same room.
Other collections, species from all over the world.
Deyrolle suffered a devastating fire on February 1st, 2008...much to the distress of generations of Parisians who have loved Deyrolle for 170 years. But Deyrolle is on the road back, rebuilding those collections that were lost or damaged in the fire.
This is the room where the fire started. There is a temporary photo exhibit showing the extent of the fire damage and soon new displays will bring this room back to normal.
In the fire room, a fox sits on a chair...this is typical of the fun and whimsy that make Deyrolle such a treasure for children...of all ages.
The street level entry way is now a gardening store, but the stair case leads to the real treasures, the natural history collections found on the second floor
This is a sample of the Easter 2009 window display...cute, busy, seasonal, very attractive, and just plan fun.
This is the view from the top of the stairs, the view that welcomes children of all ages (I include myself in that group, still a child).
The next room is case after case of insects, birds, snakes, sea creatures, you name it, it's part of the Deyrolle collection. Of course, they throw in the occasional donkey, just for the fun of it.
An example of a typical Deyrolle case....dozens of variation of the same species, all perfectly perserved and mounted, and all for sale with their own smaller cases.
Deyrolle also features prepared small collections for sale, but you can also pick out specimens to design your own collection box/frame.
There are dozens and dozens of bird cases, species from all over the world.
Have you ever seen the complete exoskeleton of a lobster, mounted so you can see every distinct part? They do the same with skeletons of many fish, snakes, mammals, etc.
Another room, more astounding collections.
Another look at the same room.
Other collections, species from all over the world.
Deyrolle suffered a devastating fire on February 1st, 2008...much to the distress of generations of Parisians who have loved Deyrolle for 170 years. But Deyrolle is on the road back, rebuilding those collections that were lost or damaged in the fire.
This is the room where the fire started. There is a temporary photo exhibit showing the extent of the fire damage and soon new displays will bring this room back to normal.
