Jardin du Luxembourg, Paris

The Luxembourg Garden unfolds around formal paths, lawns, flowerbeds, sculptures, and a broad water basin where children sail model boats. Its story begins in 1612, when Marie de’ Medici commissioned a palace and garden inspired by her Florentine childhood; the grounds now belong to the French Senate, whose meetings take place in the palace. The garden covers 23 hectares and is also known informally as le Luco, a name linked to the ancient Latin name of this hill.

Find the Medici Fountain, built in 1620 by Salomon de Brosse. It began as an artificial grotto and fountain, then acquired its long basin and sculptural decoration when Paris was reconstructed in the nineteenth century. The garden’s present character also reflects Jean-François Chalgrin, who restored it after the Revolution and preserved the former Carthusian nursery and vineyards.

Around the basin, terraces carry statues of French queens, saints, and figures copied from antiquity. Across the grounds are just over a hundred statues, monuments, and fountains. The Orangerie now presents temporary exhibitions of art, photography, and sculpture, while the southwest orchard contains apple and pear trees beside a puppet theatre. This is a garden shaped by royal ambition, religious land, artistic memory, and everyday play.