As your first entrance into the magical world of VERSAILLES, don’t forget to stop and look up like many have, before you.  Still glorious,  the entrance to the Palace of Versailles is an eye full of French symbols that have come to mean luxury and exclusivity.  Wrought iron covered in gold leaf, they are still impressive, though the size of the entrance seems small in comparison to the grandeur of the entire view.  As you enter the gates, imagine what an 18th century nobleman thought as his coach clattered over the pavers as he rushed to a royal fete.  The design and workmanship combine to create ARTIFICE at its best and bring together both artistic and symbolic meaning that is around every corner at VERSAILLES.  The gates were a powerful political symbol designed to impress.  Later, during the French Revolution they were all that separated the King from his people…and we know how that turned out. 

ARTIFICE