In 2010, a Paris apartment was discovered that had been left untouched and abandoned for 70 years

During the Nazi occupation of Paris, her granddaughter fled the city and never returned, yet she continued paying rent on the apartment each month until her death in 2010 at the age of 91.

When the apartment was finally opened, one of the executors described it as “like stepping into Sleeping Beauty’s apartment.” Inside, furniture, paintings, and personal belongings were found exactly as they had been left, untouched for seven decades.

On a bedroom wall hung an unsigned portrait, which was later identified as a painting of Marthe de Florian herself by the renowned artist Giovanni Boldini.

Though she had been largely forgotten by history for 70 years, the apartment preserved her life in remarkable detail, as if nothing had ever been lost.

In 2010, a Paris apartment was discovered that had been left untouched and abandoned for 70 years.

The apartment once belonged to Marthe de Florian, a well-known Parisian courtesan of the 1890s. During the Nazi occupation of Paris, her granddaughter fled the city and never… pic.twitter.com/PmyzqdMTaC

— Historic Vids (@historyinmemes)May 20, 2026