Église Saint-Thomas-d'Aquin

**Exterior**

Now you're looking at something that resembles the typical European church we know. In French the name is "Saint-Thomas d'Aquin," but for convenience we'll call him by the familiar name, Thomas Aquinas.

Saint-Thomas-d'Aquin was also once part of a monastery. After Luther's Reformation, Catholicism launched its own internal reform and self-purification movement, known as the Counter-Reformation. One of the buildings erected then to study and spread the faith was this church, as a Dominican monastery.

It's a leading example of late Baroque in Paris, symmetrical, with different column styles on the first and second floors. Look above the doors on both sides, where the second floor's lower part joins the first: the wing shapes connect in gentle curves, a feature influenced by a church in Rome. The sculpture inside the triangle below the roof is an allegory: religion, personified as a winged woman, carrying God's truth to the world. The branches held by the two angels above the central door represent martyrdom and victory. Above the left door is a sculpture of the Virgin Mary handing over a rosary, symbolizing the Dominicans' signature prayer, the Rosary. Who receives the rosary? You might think Thomas Aquinas, but the correct answer is Saint Dominic.

**Top 5 artworks not to miss**

The church is small enough to take in at a glance, and the interior is worth a look. After works were lost during the French Revolution, the City of Paris later donated many to replace them, including quite a few looted by Napoleon. It's worth stopping in as a small museum as much as a church.

1. The ceiling painting of the Chapel of Saint Louis by François Lemoyne, the painter of the ceiling of the Salon of Hercules at the Palace of Versailles. The sculpture in the Chapel of the Virgin is by Gilles Guérin; compare it with Versailles if you go later. There's also a work by Jean Restout II, which makes for fun comparisons. 2-3. Works by Guercino and Salvator Rosa, both notable among the works Napoleon looted. The vast collections of Napoleon's army and Hitler's SS are famous for their masterpieces, and seeing works from such collections up close is reason enough to drop in. The church has another painting of the Assumption of the Virgin, in the stained glass above the Chapel of the Virgin. Compare the two and see which you prefer. 4. The fourth is a painting of the Crown of Thorns being handed over. Where is that crown today? The answer is in this tour.

After the paintings, look up at the organ. A classic French organ with a 250-year tradition, it has the unusual distinction of having been moved to the Panthéon during the French Revolution and later returned.

5. The last is a painting of Saint Stephen, the first Christian martyr, symbolizing the Dominican order's emphasis on studying and preaching the truth.

**The altar and the Chapel of Saint Louis**

What stands out most in this church is the altar. I thought the altar at the Chapel of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal was the most unusual, but this one goes further, as if a temple had been set inside. Its dome, a Baroque element, is lower than in other churches. The dome's ceiling painting and the murals in the Chapel of Saint Louis are by Merry-Joseph Blondel, who also worked on the Louvre's ceiling decorations.

Having seen the altar, walk around behind it. You'll find the most ornate part of the church. Once the monastery's choir, it's said to be among the most beautiful places in Paris. The three stained-glass windows above the choir are also famous, so don't miss them.

As a former part of a monastery, the church has no side chapels like other churches. Instead, it has two altars. The first figure of our tour appears here too: the altars of Saint Vincent de Paul and Saint Joseph.

**Directions**

Next is the Cathedral of Saint Volodymyr. It takes about five minutes, and you'll stroll along Boulevard Saint-Germain, now said to be safe even with luxury shopping bags in hand. See the photos on screen and the in-app map. With your back to the church, step onto the road and head right, in the direction traffic flows. After passing a row of buildings, you'll find the Cathedral of Saint Volodymyr inside an alley with a small garden.