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The circular building which houses the Commercial Exchange was erected as a grain market in 1767 and remodelled in the 19th century. It was first covered with a wooden dome, then by subsequent structures of iron and copper. Under today’s glass dome, activity in the coffee and sugar commodities market is covered at a leisurely pace compared to the way other world financial centres operate.

Formerly the parish church of the Lombard moneylenders, St-Merry was built between 1520 and 1612, and reflects the Flamboyant Gothic style. Its name is a corruption of St-Médéric, who was buried on this site in the early 8th century. The bell in the church’s northwest turret, thought to be the oldest in Paris, dates from 1331 and hung in a chapel which once stood on the site. Other highlights include the decorative west front, the 17th-century organ loft, beautiful stained glass and carved wood panelling.

The Square des Innocents is a Les Halles crossroads and a hang-out for street performers and students. It was built atop a cemetery in the 18th century, and two million remains were transferred to the Catacombs at Denfert-Rochereau. The splendid Renaissance fountain, the last of its era built in the city, was designed by Pierre Lescot and carved by sculptor Jean Goujon in 1547. It originally stood against a wall on rue St-Denis, and was later moved to the new square, when the fourth side was added.

Ten years after the original market was demolished, the so-called “largest urban hole in Europe” was filled with this con- troversial shopping complex. This largely underground maze caters to the young, with music shops and boutiques selling trendy fashions. Outside, buskers, students and tourists mill about the steps and gardens. Separate metal and glass buildings house the Pavillion des Arts and the Maison de la Poésie, cultural centres for art and poetry respectively. Today, it’s more of a sore spot than a hotspot and French architect David Mangin has been brought in to revamp the area during 2007–8.

The “Defender of Time”, Paris’s modern public clock, stands appropriately in the Quartier de l’Horloge (Clock Quarter) shopping area. This fantasy mechanical sculpture of brass and steel by Jacques Monastier is 4 m (13 ft) high and weighs one tonne. When the clock strikes the hour, the warrior fends off a savage bird, crab or dragon (representing air, water and earth) with his sword, with accompanying sound effects. At noon, 6pm and 10pm he vanquishes all three, to the crowd’s delight.

This delightful doll museum has a superb collection of 300 rare French dolls, including unglazed hand-painted porcelain dolls which were manufactured between 1850 and 1950. Many are imaginatively displayed in tableaux which portray various scenes, such as dolls having tea or playing with nursery toys. The museum is run by a father and son team, Guido and Samy Odin, who also handle doll repair.

The late Gothic tower, dating from 1523, is all that remains of the church of St-Jacques-la-Boucherie, once the largest medieval church in Paris and a starting point for pilgrims on their journey to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. In the 17th century the physicist Blaise Pascal used the tower for barometrical experiments. The church was pulled down after the Revolution. Today the tower is used as a meteorological observatory.