In the 16th century, the influence of Italian art gave birth in France to a taste for Antiquity. Everywhere there appeared channeled columns and pilasters, with Ionic or Corinthian capitals, curvilinear or triangular pediments, coffered ceilings, sculptures of worldly inspiration and statues of figures ever more bared, recalling mythology.
The semi-circular arch came back into fashion. It was the time of the construction of the Louvre’s new wing, the Hôtel Carnavalet, the Hôtel Lamoignon and the delightful Innocents Fountain.
Religious architecture won renown with the church of Saint Eustache or that of Saint-Etienne-du-Mont with its superb rood-screen. Their decoration is rich with the Renaissance, while their structure is still Gothic.
