Paris, Les Halles Market, Silver Gelatin Black and White Photography, Circa 1940

Details

Description

A unique, original silver gelatin black and white photograph by Keystone View and Co.
View of The Halles Market in … Read more A unique, original silver gelatin black and white photograph by Keystone View and Co.
View of The Halles Market in Paris, circa 1940.
Features:
Original silver gelatin print photography unframed.
Press photography.
Press agency: KEYSTONE VIEW CO, Paris.
Photographer: Anonymous.
Title: Paris, The Halles, circa 1940.
Provenance: Private collection.
Image Size: 3.15 in high (8.1 cm) x 4.33 in wide (11.6 cm) - Archivally matted in a 17 in x 13 in mat.
A typed caption at the back reads "Paris 1er ardt, Les Halles" (Paris, 1st Arrondissement, The Halles Market).
We will ship the piece in a mat (17 x 13 in) that fits a standard-sized frame.

About:
Les Halles was Paris's central fresh food market. It was demolished in 1971 and replaced by the Westfield Forum des Halles, a modern shopping mall constructed underground and directly connected to the RER and métro transit hub.
In the 11th Century, a market grew by a cemetery to the northwest of Paris in an area called the Little Fields (Champeaux). It was mainly a dry goods and money-changing shopping market.
In 1183, Philip Augustus took control of the market and built two market halls (Halles) to protect the textiles. Then, when he constructed walls around the city of Paris, these embraced the market, which quickly became the city's largest (and, over time, went from being at the edge to its center). Officially, it would remain a dry goods market for centuries, but food stalls soon grew around the main buildings, and by the 15th Century, food prices at Les Halles were cited as significant for the whole city. The market would have ups and downs over the coming centuries and was renovated more than once. Over time, an increasing number of halls were built explicitly for food.
Unable to compete in the new market economy and in need of massive repairs, the colorful ambiance once associated with the bustling area of merchant stalls disappeared in 1971 when Les Halles was dismantled; the wholesale market relocated to the suburb of Rungis. Two glass and cast-iron market pavilions were dismantled and re-erected elsewhere; one in the Paris suburb of Nogent-sur-Marne, the other in Yokohama, Japan. See less