Hôtel de Sens

Surprises kept happening in Paris. Somehow, although I knew that the  Hôtel de Sens was situated in the Marais,  John and I always seem to come upon it by accident.

And so one day while taking a small detour on our way to the Seine we came upon the rear parterre gardens of the magical medieval palace residence.

 One of the few remaining Medieval residences in Paris, the home of the Archbishop of Sens, it was built between 1475 and 1507.

The little jewel box of a building is a mix of Late Gothic and Early Renaissance styles. This is the courtyard.

One more surprise for us, I just read that the building houses the Fornay Art Library of art and craftsmanship, displays regular exhibitions from its collection and is open to the public for free. We didn't even imagine entering the building. Next visit!