One of Paris's most romantic quartiers, Montmartre embraces much of the largely petit-bourgeois and working-class 18e arrondissement, as well the somewhat less respectable Pigalle district on the northern edge of the 9e arrondissement. The heart of the quartier is the Butte Montmartre , at 130m the highest point in Paris. It's crowned by the white domes of Sacré-Coeur , a stone's throw away from the picturesque place du Tertre , whose crowds of pavement artists perpetuate a well-founded Montmartre cliché. The quartier's artistic associations go back to the nineteenth century, when artists such as Renoir, Picasso, Braque and Dufy colonized the steep, winding streets of the Butte. The streets and stairways retain something of the area's former village atmosphere - Montmartre was only included in the Parisian city limits in 1860 - and have formed a backdrop to many a sepia-romantic image.

 

The quiet, residential area south of Pigalle is also rich in artistic connections and harbours a couple of distinctive museums displaying work by former artist residents. The past also lives on at the St-Ouen flea market , on the northern edge of the 18e arrondissement.