Main Façade of Petit Palais - Paris

This is the grand entrance to end all grand entrances. There is no grand entrance in Paris that is grander than this one!

The Petit Palais, located on Avenue Winston-Churchill facing the Grand Palais, is a splendid early‑20th century Beaux‑Arts gem, built for the 1900 Exposition Universelle and now housing Paris’s Musée des Beaux‑Arts de la Ville de Paris.

Designed by Charles Girault, it blends classical grandeur with turn-of-the-century urban elegance. In this image, at the heart of the main façade, approximately 130–150 m wide, stands a striking monumental porch, reached by a broad ceremonial staircase. Above it rises a graceful dome, echoing the silhouette of Les Invalides across the Seine. Filling the semi-circular tympanum above the doorway is a powerful allegory by Jean‑Antoine Injalbert, depicting the City of Paris reclining among the Muses, holding a ship emblematic of the Seine. Flanking this central group are sculptural ensembles: on the left, “The Four Seasons” by Louis Convers, and on the right, “The Seine and Its Tributaries” by Maurice Ferrary.