Fire Severely Damages the Hôtel Lambert in Paris
As reported by BBC News (10 July 2013) . . .
Hôtel Lambert, 2 rue Saint-Louis-en-l’Île, Paris
(Photo: Wikimedia Commons, 2010)
A fire has damaged the landmark 17th-century Hotel Lambert in Paris. Dozens of firefighters tackled the blaze, which broke out overnight on the roof of the riverside mansion in the centre of the French capital. The building was being renovated after its purchase by a Qatari prince in 2007. Located on the World Heritage-listed Seine embankment, the mansion was once home to the 18th-century philosopher Voltaire.
It took six hours for the fire brigade to put out the blaze, which started in an area below the rooftop which emergency services found difficult to access. A large portion of the roof has been destroyed. A spokesman for the fire service, Lieutenant Colonel Pascal Le Testu, said 650 square metres (7,000 sq ft) of the roof had gone, along with a section of a central staircase. Some of the brickwork on the front of the building has collapsed. Renowned fresco ceiling paintings by Charles Le Brun in the Gallery of Hercules were also “severely damaged by smoke and water”, Lt Col Testu said. . .
The full article is available here»
Enfilade 
The salle des bains by Eustache Le Sueur has apparently been completely lost. But the Galerie d’Hercule has fared better http://www.latribunedelart.com/dernieres-nouvelles-de-l-hotel-lambert-4550
Many thanks for the additional information. -CH
That is so horrible.
Absolutely heartbreaking.