Sketches painted from nature of the animals  in the Royal Menagerie at Versailles

Built by the architect Louis Le Vau in 1663-1664, the Royal Menagerie, which no longer exists, was one of the first and most curious architectural constructions of Louis XIV’s reign. It consisted of an octagonal central pavilion around which seven courtyards were arrayed, housing animals from the four corners of the world. Visitors could admire them all from a balcony, while inside, the salon was decorated with 49 canvases representing the first animals to live in the Menagerie. Some of these animals were diplomatic gifts, such as the tigress given by the sultan of Morocco in 1862, or came from French colonies, such as beavers from Canada, or were purchased during expeditions to distant lands. The animals here were not considered as mere curiosities, but as living beings to be studied and described in accordance with a new scientific classification of species. This is why the Menagerie is now considered to have been the world’s first zoo.