Walk round the
Palais by the quay along the north branch of the Seine till you come to
the Rue de Harlay. Turn there to your left, toward the handsome and
imposing modern facade of this side of the Palais de Justice. The interior
is unworthy a visit. The Rue de Harlay forms the westernmost end of the
original Ile de la Cite. The prow-shaped extremity of the modern island
has been artificially produced by embanking the sites of two or three
minor islets. The Palace Dauphine, which occupies the greater part of this
modern extension, was built in 1608; it still affords a characteristic
example of the domestic Paris of the period before Baron Haussmann.
Continue along the quay as far as the Pont-Neuf, so as to gain an idea of
the extent of the Ile de la Cite in this direction. The center of the
Pont-Neuf is occupied by an equestrian statue of Henri IV., first of the
Bourbon kings. Its predecessor was erected in 1635, and was destroyed to
make cannon during the great Revolution. Louis XVIII. re-erected it. From
this point you can gain a clear idea of the two branches of the Seine as
they unite at the lower end of the Ile de la Cite.
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