Little Fat Egyptian Bedding

Paris iPhone Photo Chronicles ~ Little Fat Egyptian Bedding ~

Little Fat Egyptian Bedding, originally uploaded by Paris Set Me Free.

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When I was younger, and I was once, you know, I had a small fat Greek wedding, and my best man had to chase me and my bride around the alter holding these two wreath thingies over our heads, just like what the statues doing in the picture.

I had long hair at the time; well, I had hair; and I remember being annoyed because it was getting tugged all over the place by these spiky things. Ain't tradition grand. And if it was supposed to bestow some sort of charm on our marriage, well, here I am in France so, next!

The statue isn't actually participating in a Greek hair tugging pre-divorce ceremony but represents victory (them there's the laurels of) being offered to, did you guess... that modest little chap that goes by the name of Little Big Nap the 1st.

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The first emperor's victories at Lodi, Pyramides (not the metro station), Marengo, Ulm and the Siege of Dantzig in Poland are lauded on the column, in case you'd forgotten how great Napoleon actually was.

The statue's in gorgeous gold, with a couple of very impressive resting wings, and, hmm, oh yeah, she's got her tits out for the boys, in a touching display of humble piety.

Egypt features regularly in the Paris urban landscape, and this is a good example, with the column standing in the Fontaine du Palmier (or du Châtelet, or de la Victoire if you prefer) which sports four impressive sphynx spouting water but as they're not in the pic I won't mention them. Oops, just did.

It may be that the Tricolor did fly at the time of Napoleon, as it had been adopted by the French National Convention back in the mid 1790s, but what is represented by the colours is a little harder to say.

Take the white, for example. It could be variously interpreted as symbolising the monarchy, Joan of Arc, or the Virgin Mary. Blue and red are the colours of Paris (thanks Sts. Mart and Den, respectively). So the white surrounded by the city's hues could be interpreted as a cosy relationship between the royalty and the town, or perhaps a rather forced and claustrophobic relationship for the king, as various rolling heads had all too recently proved.

My head's still attached, the last time I checked, but the direct link to the heart my be a little shaky. And the rice-throwing. Don't get me started on the rice-throwing... σας δούμε σύντομα.

And why not...

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