Dome

Floor plan found on site; The Hôtel Biron is an hôtel particulier in the rue de Varenne, in the 7th arrondissement of Paris, that was built for the chief adviser to the Duchess of Bourbon, Abraham Peyrenc de Moras; his house, the most superb in the neighborhood, was built as a free-standing structure, not entre cour et jardin ("between entrance court and garden") with party walls against adjoining buildings. The service wings bordering the forecourt are independent from the free-standing block of the corps-de-logis, so that the building resembles a suburban villa (maison de plaisance). The extreme simplicity of the astylar court elevation reflects the style of de Cotte. The house is still surrounded by three hectares (7.3 acres) of grounds. In 1753 it became the property of the Duc de Biron (1700-1788). Later it was a girls boarding school (stripped of its Rococo interiors) and finally, subdivided into lodgings. Rodin used rooms as a studio; in 1909, at the height of his fame, he began to agitate for the Hôtel Biron to become a museum of his work. He made a bequest of his property, his archives and the contents of his studio at the time of his death, and the French government accepted in 1916. The museum opened in 1919. Efforts are ongoing to restore some of the 18th century decorations. Source: Grove Art Online; http://www.oxfordartonline.com/ (accessed 6/22/2015)