Place Joachim-du-Bellay 2.1

Place Joachim-du-Bellay is square near the center of Paris, France, in the 1st arrondissement, near Les Halles and the Pompidou Center. It is named after Joachim du Bellay, a French poet and literary critic (1522–1560).The place Joachim-du-Bellay was built in 1787 on the location of the previous Saints Innocents Cemetery, after the cemetery's demolition. The Fountain of Innocents now resides in the center of the square, marking the last still standing remnant of the cemetery.History of LocationWhile the history of the location on which place Joachim-du-Bellay resides is long and rich, this history of the square itself is rather simple.The previous structure was that of the Saints Innocents Cemetery, which operated, along with The Church of the Saints Innocents, from the 9th century (Middle Ages) to 1780 AD (during the Ancien Régime in France), when it was closed due to overuse.The Saints Innocents Cemetery is notable because it held the first documented mural of Danse Macabre, a style of painting during late-medieval times emphasizing the impact of Death on lives and all ages. This mural was destroyed, however, almost 200 years after its construction, in 1669.