Place Bellecour

The Place Bellecour (French pronunciation: [plas bɛlkuʁ]) is a large square in the centre of Lyon, France, to the north of the Ainay district.

[1] Another statue, representing the Petit Prince and Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, is at the west end of the square.

This square forms the central focus of the Presqu'île (peninsula), between the Saône and the Rhône, in the 2nd arrondissement of Lyon.

In Roman times, the quarter had military and commercial activities: remains of huts which served as warehouses for traders and Gallo-Roman boatmen, called Canabae, have been found in this area.

[2] In the late 12th century, the archbishop of Lyon had a vineyard there called Bella curtis (Beau jardin in French).

Named Place Louis-le-Grand, it was adorned with a bronze statue of the king made by Martin Desjardins.

Around the square, some buildings were then constructed whose façades were designed by Robert de Cotte, the first architect of Louis XIV.

It is accompanied, at his feet, by two allegorical statues of the Saône and the Rhône, created by the brothers Nicolas and Guillaume Costou in 1720.