For a potent distillation of Parisian history, head to these two adjacent mansions in the heart of the Marais; the pair hold a fascinating trove of artifacts. Material dating from the city's origins until 1789 is in the Hôtel Carnavalet, and material from 1789 to the present is in the Hôtel Peletier St-Fargeau; a gallery connects the two buildings. In the late 17th century the Hôtel Carnavalet was the setting for the most brilliant salon in Paris, presided over by Madame de Sévigné, best known for the hundreds of letters she wrote to her daughter. The Hôtel Carnavalet, transformed into a museum in 1880, is full of maps and plans, furniture, and busts and portraits of Parisian worthies down the ages. The section on the Revolution includes riveting models of guillotines and objects associated with the royal family's final days, including the king's razor and the chess set used by the royal prisoners at the approach of their own endgame. Lovers of the decorative arts will enjoy the period rooms here, especially those devoted to that most French of French styles, 18th-century rococo. Be sure to see the evocative re-creations of Marcel Proust's cork-lined bedroom, the late-19th-century Fouquet jewelry shop, and a room from the Art Nouveau monument the Café de Paris, all in the Peletier St-Fargeau section. COST: Free for permanent collection, EUR6 for exhibits. Métro: St-Paul.