La Maison Deyrolle – a famous taxidermy boutique in Paris, I must confess I had no clue of it’s existence until I saw the movie Midnight In Paris and got curious about some of the places where the scenes took place. And that is the story behind how I discovered Deyrolle, thanks to Woody Allen who chose to shoot one of the scenes for his move Midnight In Paris there :-)
During my last trip to Paris a visit to La Maison Deyrolle was therefore on my list and it was truly an adventure seeing all those wild animals in all different sizes, from small butterflies, to a giant bear, elephant, birds and beautiful swans in a beautiful typical Parisian saloon.
I like taxidermy (as long as I know the animal haven’t been haunted and killed for that purpose) and there were so many animals I wanted to buy and bring with my to my home in Copenhagen. But I had to be realistic, none of them would have fitted in my suitcases…so I was pleased by just wandering around, studying them from close and taking photos to share with you.
The store was established in 1831 by the entomologist Jean-Baptiste Deyrolle and a part from having taxidermy they were famous for their educational posters that were translated into many different languages. Nowadays La Maison Deyrolle is owned by the Prince Louis Albert de Broglie, also called the Prince Jardinier (The Gardener Prince). Unfortunately a larger part of the collection and 90 % of the interior was destroyed during a fire in February 2008. With the help from the French Army, Hèrmes, Christie’s and numerous artists around the world it has been possible to restore some objects and they also recieved taxidermies from different contributors from around the world.
According to their website most of taxidermies in La Maison Deyrolle have died a natural death in circuses and zoological reserves and many of them come from Deyrolle’s vintage collection.
I let the photos speak for themselves and if you are in Paris you should definately stop by and visit the store.
La Maison Deyrolle – 46 rue du Bac, 75007 Paris
La Maison Deyrolle – taxidermy boutique in Paris
La Maison Deyrolle – taxidermy boutique in Paris
La Maison Deyrolle – taxidermy boutique in Paris
La Maison Deyrolle – taxidermy boutique in Paris
La Maison Deyrolle – taxidermy boutique in Paris
La Maison Deyrolle – taxidermy boutique in Paris
La Maison Deyrolle – taxidermy boutique in Paris
La Maison Deyrolle – taxidermy boutique in Paris
La Maison Deyrolle – taxidermy boutique in Paris
La Maison Deyrolle – taxidermy boutique in Paris
