1862 Marseille, France Letter with 1853-60 Napoleon III EMPIRE Imperforate Stamp

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1862 Marseille, France Letter with 1853-60 Napoleon III EMPIRE Imperforate Stamp:
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1862 Marseille, France Letter with 1853-60 Napoleon III EMPIRE Imperforate Stamp
I recently returned from Paris, France where I was fortunate enough to have visited two places that are know for their philatelic merchants, the Passage des Panoramas and the Marche aux Timbres. The item(s) listed here were acquired on a few visits to both places.
Passage des Panoramas
ThePassage des Panoramasis the oldest of thecovered passages of Paris, located in the2nd arrondissement of Parisbetween theMontmartreboulevard to the North and Saint-Marc street to the south. It is one of the earliest venues of the Parisian philatelic trade, and it was one of the first covered commercial passageways in Europe.Bazaarsandsouksin theOrienthad roofed commercial passageways centuries earlier but the Passage de Panoramas innovated in having glazed roofing and, later on, in 1817, gas lights for illumination. It was an ancestor of the city gallerias of the 19th century and the covered suburban and cityshopping mallsof the 20th century.

The passage was opened in 1800 on the site of the town residence of the Marechal de Montmorency, Duke of Luxembourg, which had been built in 1704. The doorway of the modern building, of the house, which opened on rue Saint-Marc, facing the rue des Panoramas, was the gateway of the original mansion. Its name came from an attraction built on the site; two large rotundas where panoramic paintings of Paris, Toulon, Rome, Jerusalem, and other famous cities were displayed. They were a business venture of the American inventorRobert Fulton, who had come to Paris to offer his latest inventions, the steamboat, submarine, and torpedo, toNapoleonand theFrench Directory. While waiting for an answer, Fulton earned money from his exhibition. Napoleon, who had little interest in the navy, finally rejected Fulton\'s projects. Fulton left behind his Panoramas and went to London to offer his inventions to the British.

In 1800, Paris streets were narrow, dark, muddy and crowded, and very few had sidewalks or lighting; they were very unpleasant for shopping. The first indoor gallery, at the Palais Royal, had opened in 1786, followed by the passage Feydau in 1790-91, the Passage du Caire in 1799, and the Passage des Panoramas in 1800. The rotundas were destroyed in 1831. In the 1830s, the architectJean-Louis Victor Grisartrenovated the passage and created three additional galleries inside the block of houses: the Saint-Marc gallery parallel with the passage, the gallery of the Varietes which gives access to the entry of the artists of the theatre of the Varietes, and the Feydeau galleries and Montmartre. Stern the famous engraver settled there in 1834, then merchants ofpostcardsandpostage stamps, and some restaurants moved in. The part of the passage close to the Montmartre boulevard is richly decorated, while the distant part is more modest. The passage, as it was in 1867, is described in chapter VII ofÉmile Zola\'s novelNana.

Marche aux Timbres

Because of the number of inhabitants and the ease of access to this city,Parisconcentrates a large number of associations, businesses, institutions and places devoted tophilatelyand open to collectors. Since the early years of Paris becoming one of Europes philatelic centerscollectors have sought to meet to make exchanges.For lack of associations, the Parisian gardens served as meeting places: thePalais-Royalin 1860, then thegarden of Luxembourgfor example.

In1887, a landowner sold to the city of Paris the land ofCarré Marigny. A stamp market was installednearAvenue des Champs - Elyséesandthe Elysée Palace. The market for professional merchants is located onAvenue Gabrielon Thursday, Saturday, Sunday and public holidays.Each year, an event attracts merchants for the \"Four Days of Marigny.\"

Collectors wishing to legally exchange stamps,phonecardsorcoins(the sale is theoretically illegal) have become accustomed to using the benches ofAvenue Matignonwhich crosses Avenue Gabriel.