Exhibition Review: Versailles: Science and Splendour, The Science Museum, Lonodn

When you think of the extravagant palace of Versailles in France you likely thing of luxury, fantastic balls for the country’s wealthiest, and its famous final royal inhabitants, Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI. You’d be forgiven for not immediately thinking of scientific endeavours, yet this exhibition at the Science Museum in London demonstrates how it was at the centre of scientific developments across the board during the reigns of Louis XIV, XV, and XVI. You are taken thematically through a series of rooms, all designed in such a way to immerse you in the era. We learn variously about bringing water to Versailles, garden design and innovation, the menagerie, astronomy, medicine, and clockmaking. There's something for everyone in this accessible, fascinating exhibition which shows how the French court mixed cutting edge technology with elegance and beauty.

You learn about the tools required to create a grand symmetrical garden, and how water was brought to the Palace. The Marly Machine was designed to lift water out of the Seine before transporting it quite some distance via aqueducts, supplying more water to Versailles than the whole of Paris. The machine, admittedly, didn’t work terribly well, but remained functioning for around 130 years. I also enjoyed learning about the innovations in the fountains, and Louis’ hopes for a constantly changing display. This proved impossible so he had to make do with displays on a rotation of over two hours, with some manual interference when he was out walking to give the appearance of ever changing combinations. 

We then delve into the world of botany and the experiments growing plants not native to the country. A painting commemorates the first successful growth of a pineapple. Soon we’re faced with a full-sized taxidermied rhino as we learn more about the animals that lived at the Palace. There are some quite remarkably modern looking paintings on display.

The section on medical advances is interesting, with an early model of pregnancy used by pioneering midwife Madame du Courdray, who is not the only woman celebrated in the exhibition. We see Émilie du Châtelet’s manuscript of her translation of Isaac Newton’s Principa, which is still used today, highlighting its significance. There is also discussion of the way in which the girls of the royal family were encouraged to experiment and learn subjects that may have been more widely considered unsuitable.

There are some grisly items on display - the tools used to heal Louis XIV’s anal fistula, and an acknowledgment of the sacrifice made of non-royals in working out how to successfully carry out the procedure. In other ways the royals were able to benefit public health by promoting the use of inoculations, happily having them administered, acting as a prominent example of success.

Many of the objects naturally come from France, and it’s wonderful to have the opportunity to see them, but they also acknowledge that much of the royal collection was lost and broken up during the Revolution. They continue to attempt to rebuild it today. There are beautiful, unusual objects on display, and a fascinating thread of innovation and discovery running throughout. The exhibition highlights the fact these experiments were not working in isolation however, acknowledging the work happening in other countries at the time, and the way in which various parties were willing to share knowledge and assist in each other’s endeavours. This lovely exhibition is open until 21st April 2025 and I’d recommend trying to catch it if you’re interested in history, science, or design.