Palais de Justice

One of the oldest and most prestigious official buildings in Paris is the Palais de Justice, which can be found on the Ile de la Cité. The Palais covers 4 hectares of land and has multiple floors totaling almost 200,000 square feet. Over 3,150 windows and more than 7,000 entrances may be found inside the structure's 24 kilometers of corridors.

The Palais de Justice in Paris has deep historical roots and is frequently considered symbolic of the city itself. Today, the Palais de Justice is home to both the Paris Court of Appeals and France's highest appeals court, the Court of Cassation.

The palace was the official residence of monarchs for many years. Therefore it also has deep roots in royal history. The building's intricate design incorporates features from the fourteenth to the twentieth centuries.

How to explore Palais de Justice?

The Palais de Justice's vast hall, the 'pas perdus,' was originally used as a massive royal reception hall and is now open to the public.

The heart of the palace is the Salle des Pas Perdus, or Vestibule des Assises. The Salle features two enormous naves separated by round-arched arcades and provides entrance to many civil courts, including the Chambre Dorée, a relic from the original palace.

See the fascinating Second Empire decoration in the Cour de Cassation's civil chamber.

Check out the 'Egypto-Doric' fluted columns and 'Renaissance-Esque' windows at Vestibule de Harley. These arches and vaults are not there to hold up the buildings but rather to decorate the exterior and conceal the supporting structures. The figures in classical garb and the three sets of stairs alleviate the crushing impact of the building's exterior. Examine a statue of the Emperor dressed for his coronation in this section.

The First Civil Room of the Tribunal de Grande Instance, where the Revolutionary Court sat and Queen Marie-Antoine was convicted, is one such chamber worth visiting.

The two imposing laying links frame the main staircase. Talk a walk through this staircase to experience grandiosity.

The Quai de l'Horloge on the building's eastern side is actually an extension of the Conciergerie on the building's western side.

As a final section to check out, visit the old Regional Directorate of the Criminal Investigation Department of the Paris Police Prefecture, located at 36 Quai des Orfèvres. This section mostly occupies the building's West façade.