Hôtel Lauzun (Pimodan):

Construction on this townhouse, also designed by Louis le Vau, began near the end of the year 1555 and was finished in 1657 for Charles les Grüyn des Bordes. It was acquired by the Duc de Lauzun in 1682 to receive his long-time love "La Grande Mademoiselle," cousin to the king, but was sold soon after in 1684 to the Richelieu and then Pimodan families.

In the 1800's the Baron Pichon, an art collector, bought the hotel and rented out the apartments, which by this time were in dire need of repairs, to artists and writers such as Baudelaire and Théophile Gautier. Thanks to the nature of its residents, it became, for the time, the meeting place of the bohemian elite and was frequented by personalities such as Delacroix, Musset, Dumas, and Balzac.

In 1899 the City of Paris bought the mansion, but resold it in 1905 to Louis Pichon, grandson of the original baron, intent on projects of restoration. In 1928 it was once again bought up by the City and was completely restored.

As is the case with its neighbor directly to the East, the Hôtel Lambert, the hotel is known for its lavish decoration highlighted by Le Sueur's Triumph of Cérès, tapestries of Maximilian at the Hunt, and of the labors of Hercules. Mignard contributed portraits of the Duc de Lauzun and of La Grande Mademoiselle while Hubert Robert's oil paintings were added at the end of the 1700s. This interior which contrasts markedly with its austere exterior is known especially for its statues, stuccos, painted ceilings, woodworking, and gilding all of an extreme richness.

Today the Hôtel Lauzun remains the property of the city government, but is unfortunately inaccessible to the public. It has become the site of elegant receptions given by the City Council or by the Mayor of Paris in honor of important visitors.