WHEN ONE knows Paris as it is now – cramped, noisy, polluted – it is hard to imagine that it used to look like a village with women selling flowers out of carts, horse-drawn vehicles on the Alexandre III Bridge, and a traffic-free Place de la Concorde.
The following images, captured between 1907 and 1930, were taken using the autochrome Lumière process, an early method of photography that allowed artists to capture the world around them in its natural colours. It is believed that most of the pictures featured below were taken by Léon Gimpel, Stéphane Passet, Georges Chevalier, and Auguste Léon. Thanks to Nicolas Bonnell and his blog Paris Unplugged, we are now able to see what Paris looked like over 100 years ago.
1
Flower merchant, Cambon Street, June 1918
Photo: Auguste Léon
2
Faubourg Saint Denis Street, 1914
Photo: artist unknown
3
On the Alexandre III Bridge
Photo: artist unknown
Intermission
4
Homeless man by the River Seine
Photo: artist unknown
5
Gardens of Les Invalides, 1909
Photo: artist unknown
6
Family on Pot de Fer Street, June 24th, 1914
Photo: artist unknown
7
Citroën Commercial on the Eiffel Tower for the 1925 International Exposition of Modern Industrial and Decorative Arts
Photo: Artist unknown
Intermission
8
Military man at Les Invalides, 1918
Photo: artist unknown
9
Place du Caire, 1914
Photo: Stéphane Passet
10
Notre Dame de Paris Cathedral, 1920
Photo: artist unknown
11
Montparnasse Street, July 22nd, 1914
Photo: Stéphane Passet
Intermission
12
Christmas decorations at La Samaritaine, 1930
Photo: artist unknown
13
Auteuil metro station, 1920
Photo: Frédéric Gadmer
14
Place de la Concorde
Photo: artist unknown
15
Movie theatre, 1918
Photo: artist unknown
16
Exhibition at the Grand Palais, 1909
Photo: artist unknown
17
Kitchen gardens in the 16th arrondissement, June 28th, 1918
Photo: Auguste Léon
18
Paris decorated for Bastille day, July 13th, 1919
Photo: Auguste Léon
19
Departure of the zeppelin Zodiac III, August 28th, 1909
