In the 1660s, Louis XIV gradually moved into the estate of Versailles. As his power grew, the young monarch transformed the home built by his father from a modest, hidden-away country manor into a dazzling palace. It became the permanent residence of the court in 1682.

What became of the Sun King’s Versailles?

Three centuries on, thanks to recent archaeological discoveries combined with cutting-edge technology, it has been possible to reconstruct the appearance of certain spaces that had completely disappeared. Viewers can thus explore previously unseen parts of the palace.

You can discover the enchanting Cave of Téthys, embellished with shells and brought alive by water jets, or the Small Gallery, the Sun King’s own private museum. Admire the fabulous marble in the Baths and the elegantly designed courtiers’ apartments. Enter the King’s Chamber… All these wonderful spaces and chambers of power are brought back to life thanks to the analysis of archive documents and painstaking 3D reconstitutions.

This work is an extension of the documentary titled "Versailles rediscovered - The Sun King's vanished palace" (by Marc Jampolsky, Gédéon Programmes, 2019), which is also on sale in the Palace of Versailles online shop.

Mathieu da Vinha, Mathieu Lett, Alexandre Maral, Sophie Mouquin and Vivien Richard

Number of pages: 208 pages
Release Date: March 19th, 2020
Dimensions: 14x21cm
Language: French
ISBN: 978-2-91837-136-6