Museum masterpieces - The ceilings of the Palais Garnier

In 2025, the Palais Garnier will celebrate the 200th anniversary of the birth of its architect, Charles Garnier, as well as the 150th anniversary of the inauguration of the Paris Opera. To mark the occasion, the Monnaie de Paris has decided to pay tribute to the Palais, its history and, in particular, the iconic ceiling of the auditorium.

As a great lover of opera, I have often had the opportunity to look up during a performance at the Palais Garnier to admire Marc Chagall's ceiling. I also know that behind Chagall's work lies the original version painted by Lenepveu, depicting muses behind composers and the hours of the day and night in dreamlike colours. The engraving workshop has done a tremendous job of magnifying the two works in volume, and I am proud of this collection that brings them together and lifts the curtain on a hidden treasure of the Palais Garnier.

Engraver word

Emblematic coins

The obverse of these coloured coins features Marc Chagall's fresco, commissioned by André Malraux for the ceiling of the Grand Théâtre de l'Opéra Garnier and unveiled in 1964. The central medallion on the coin is not usually visible to visitors to the Palais Garnier, as it is hidden by the large chandelier that illuminates the hall. The reverse side depicts Jules-Eugène Lenepveu's 1872 work Les Muses et les heures du jour et de la nuit (The Muses and the Hours of the Day and Night). For each composition, the decoration surrounding the work is a reproduction of the mouldings that adorn the actual ceiling. The name of each artist and the year in which the work was presented are inscribed on these ornaments.