Galerie Bordelaise

The Galerie Bordelaise is a long, iron-framed shopping arcade covered by a glass roof that runs between Rue Sainte-Catherine and Rue Piliers-de-Tutelle. Built in eighteen thirty-four, it replaced a cluster of medieval streets to bring Parisian-style commerce to the city. Its designer, Charles Durand, packed the passage with mirrors and ornate wood paneling to catch the light. Shopkeepers once used the space to sell everything from fine silks to colonial goods to the wealthiest residents of nineteenth century Bordeaux.