Rotonde de la Villette

The Rotonde de la Villette stands out by its massive, austere stone facade and circular shape, a stark contrast to the surrounding city. Architect Claude Nicolas Ledoux designed it in the seventeen eighties as a tax collection point for the Ferme Générale. Merchants bringing goods into Paris had to pay duties here, which made the building a hated symbol of royal power. Parisians eventually burned the toll gates, yet the Rotonde remained, having survived revolutions, fires, and various shifts in function.