Why was this bridge once a bustling marketplace for pigs? We are standing before the Pont aux Pourceaux. It’s not a name that typically evokes images of Parisian grandeur. But don’t let the humble name fool you. The Pont aux Pourceaux holds a curious tale. Before the grand boulevards and elegant bridges that grace Paris today, this area was a marshy, less glamorous outskirts. Driven out of the city center by the 14th century, pig farmers found refuge on the slopes of a nearby hill. This high ground, later known as the Butte Saint Roch, became a convenient spot for their porcine trade, hence the name Pont aux Pourceaux, or “Bridge of Pigs.” Over time, the city grew, and so did the prestige of the area. The once muddy slopes were leveled. The cacophony of snorting pigs gave way to the steady rhythm of Parisian life. The Pont aux Pourceaux, however, remains as a whisper of a time when Paris wasn’t so polished, a time when bridges told a different kind of story.
Église Notre-Dame de l’Air
Beneath what appears to be a simple stone and wood structure lies a history interwoven with faith aviation and community.