Breaking News, World News and Taiwan News.

Updated Wednesday, July 2, 2008 0:00 am TWN, AFP

Tourists stand at the newly restored golden gate of the Chateau de Versailles, west of Paris Monday. The gate, which was removed at the end of the XVIIIth century, has been ...

Enlarge Photo

Sponsors
▪	Buy china wholesale products from reliable chinese wholesalers on DHgate.com!
▪	Save 75% for all hotels in Shanghai, Beijing and whole China. Lowest rates for Flights in China.
▪	Get the best deals for Guangzhou Hotels or choose from more than 10,000 hotels in 499 Chinese cities.
▪	Find great real time deals on China Flights. Book flights to China or China domestic flights 24/7.

Golden Gate returned to Versailles

VERSAILLES, France -- More than three centuries after it was torn down during the French Revolution, the royal gate once again graces the entrance to Versailles, the center of power under Louis XIV.

Replicas of the 80-meter steel gate decorated with 100,000 gold leaves were unveiled on Monday after two years of painstaking work to recreate the Baroque-style piece by Jules Hardouin-Mansart.

The royal gate that once again stands at the entrance of Versailles’ cour d’honneur “provides an essential element of Versailles’ historical identity,” said Jean-Jacques Aillagon, president of the palace monument.

One of France’s most visited tourist sites, the Chateau de Versailles west of Paris has been undergoing renovation work since 2003 when the government launched the “Grand Versailles” project that is slated to last 17 years.

Private donors contributed five million euros (eight million dollars) to rebuild the gates and legions of top craftsmen and history experts were called in to ensure exact replicas would be produced.

A new visitors’ center is also under construction at Versailles to improve tourist access to the ornate palace and majestic gardens.

Subscribe to The China Post and save 25%. Click here