The upside down paddles on the sidewalks around Paris are history markers of the city. The Philippe Starck-designed paddles are in French. When walking and not speaking French you can read them. Shocking? No. Simply install the Google Translate application on your smartphone. How to do it follows this short story.
Background story
The paddles first appeared in 1992, the year I moved to Paris. The city of Paris contracted with JCDecaux to install the “pelles Starck” to inform the strolling passer-by about a monument, an event, an historical moment, a theater, a passage, etc. Jacques Chirac, then mayor of Paris, initiated the project.
For me the shape of the paddle or oar and the form of the Ile-de-la-Cité shaped like a boat go well with the Paris coat of arms, which is a boat. The Latin motto for the City of Paris is “Fluctuat nec mergitur” (tossed by the waves, but never sinks).
The Paris tourist office when it was located on the Champs-Elysées had a supply of maps to locate the markers. I began collecting all the arrondissement maps. Each map shows the location of the “spatulas” as the newspaper Le Parisien called them. Looking through the maps now feels like opening vintage books. My earliest dates from 1998; the last one from 2005. After several reprints, they exist no more–only as a collector’s item.
My original idea was to translate all 767 for my website readers. One of my crazy time-consuming projects was to photograph each one of them and preserve the stories. Although the maps are no longer available, Wikipedia and two authors have already taken care of itemising and translating.
Through Wikipedia’s page “Panneau Histore de Paris” , I found all twenty arrondissements listed. Within each arrondissement, the site provides the topic, the address, maybe an image of the paddle, the GPS and a photo of its location! When you open the English version of the Wikipedia page, a website is referenced called Paris by Plaque, to buy their book with the stories, history, mapped walks, etc.
How to read the history marker
In your journeys around Paris, if you notice one of these historical markers, listen or read the history marker. This is how to use the Google translate if you are new to this option:
- Open Google Translate App
- Ensure there is no reflection, with rather good contrast
- Set language to “French to English”
- Choose “camera”
- Listen, read or download the translation.
- Extra romantic tip: if you are two, bring along a jack for two separate earbuds (or bluetooth)
- Enjoy your walk along Parisian sidewalks!
