A lazy August scene on Avenue de Paris. The two buildings on the right of the photo were the former 'octrois' or toll-houses at the city gates. For more information about octrois, click here. These were built in 1824. The building on the left was where the tax was collected, the one on the right where the employees were housed. A gate closed the avenue to ensure tax collection. Old photo courtesy of Versailles city website.
Scène paresseuse d'août sur l'avenue de Paris. Les deux bâtiments à droite étaient les octrois et furent construits en 1824. Le pavillon de gauche contenait le bureau de perception, tandis que celui de droite était affecté au logement des préposés. Au milieu, deux portes centrales permettaient à ces derniers de surveiller jour et nuit le transit et de percevoir le montant des taxes applicables. Texte, infos et crédit photo ancienne site de la ville de Versailles.
16 comments:
How fascinating is that! You had to pay a toll to get into Versailles? Heh, heh! Today, you have to pay a "toll" to get into the Palais...oui?
I wonder if you paid to get in, then went out to buy a new donkey, would you have to pay another toll to get back in...
This could be a great source of revenue. I'm going to try to figure out a way to charge a toll for driving in the street across the front of my house.
Very sturdy toll booths!
That is a very cool bit of history, I never knew! (The wiki link is fascinating too.) There are lovely tones in your photo...though I expect no one makes toll houses that beautiful anymore.
(I also do not have TV reception, so have never seen House! But I've nice memories of Hugh Laurie in Blackadder and Jeeves & Wooster :)
c'etait bien etudie , ah des qu'il s'agit de recuperer les taxes l'imagination est au pouvoir
A great post and fascinating history as always, Ciel! Love your photo! Have a lovely evening! Enjoy!
Nice shots. I like that you included the guys on the bench. I didn't notice them until the second look.
@ Lowell: if you follow the link you'll see that toll existed everywhere. It's merely history.
Elegant bureaucracy.
Oui, j'allais dire à Lowell qu'avant on payait partout. Mais aujourd'hui c'est pareil, c'est juste la forme de perception qui a changé..C'est peut-être plus discret, mais beaucoup plus cher!
That is really interesting, I guess that's one way to ensure the tax was paid! Lovely buildings!
Now they collect "tolls" and taxes in other ways. Nice comparison of the old and new cities. :)
if these were built in 1824, that would mean that these came after the Revolution toppled the monarchy housed at Versailles.
Tu veux vraiment nous rappeler que les dures réalités de la vie après taxes étaient aussi dures antant que maintenant. La vue était définitivement plus belle à l'époque.
Very interesting Ciel, so what are these toll houses used for today, if anything.. the old B&W images is fantastic .
We called it dazio and it existed until the late 1960s. Nice inhabited local bench, by the way.
Nice scene:)
How interesting. It's especially nice to see the old photos. I like to see how a place has, or has not, changed.
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