France Guide
Alsace and Lorraine
Place Stanislas
From the gare SNCF, walk through Neoclassical Porte Stanislas, straight down rue Stanislas to reach place Stanislas. Both this gate and porte St Catherine opposite are meticulously aligned with place Stanislas's solitary statue – that of the portly Stanislas Leszczynski, who commissioned architect Emmanuel Héré to design the square in the 1750s. On the south side of the square stands the imposing Hôtel de Ville, its roof topped by a balustrade ornamented with florid urns and winged cupids. Along its walls lozenge-shaped lanterns dangle from the beaks of gilded cockerels; similar motifs adorn the other buildings bordering the square – look out for the fake, two-dimensional replacements. The square's entrances are enclosed by magnificent wrought-iron gates; the particularly impressive railings on the northern corners frame fountains dominated by statues of Neptune and Amphitrite.