Porte Dorée

The Palais de la Porte Dorée is covered in an expansive, carved stone frieze that wraps around the entire exterior facade. It depicts scenes of trade, labor, and colonial expansion from the early nineteen thirties. Built for the nineteen thirty-one Colonial Exhibition, the building served to showcase the reach and resources of the French empire at that time. Inside, the massive, opulent central hall retains much of its original art deco design, including a sprawling fresco that covers the floor of the room.