Rare Colour Photographs of Paris in 1914

Vintage images of bygone eras are always fascinating to admire as it provides a window into the life of a different time and place and highlights the stark differences in culture 100 years makes. These photographs of Paris in 1914 are particularly enchanting not only because they go back to the denouement of the peaceful and reformatory Belle Epoque, with these Parisians unknowingly on the cusp of two devastating world wars, but also because they appear in colour.

These were the sort of inspiring settings that influenced legendary writers such as Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Gertrude Stein. The vibrancy of the images add character to the scenes laid out and provide a more accurate depiction of what the streets of Paris were really like during this period. These photos poignantly capture the original iconic Moulin Rouge cabaret before it was tragically destroyed in a fire a year later, the pizzazz of a troupe of performers in period costume assemble, average Parisians in the streets, iconic buildings and theatres, as well as a one-legged soldier standing beside a cannon.