Place de l'Opéra

The Palais Garnier sits at the head of the Place de l'Opéra, anchored by a massive green copper dome topped with a golden Apollo holding a lyre. Emperor Napoleon the Third ordered the structure to replace an older theater where an assassination attempt occurred in eighteen fifty-eight. Architect Charles Garnier spent thirteen years perfecting his design, integrating grand staircases and velvet-lined halls. During the excavation, workers discovered a large underground pool, which inspired the dark, watery mystery found in Gaston Leroux's Phantom of the Opera.