Last Updated on November 20, 2023
I recently returned from a trip to Paris where I learned, during a day-long trek through Printemps and the Galleries Lafayette flagship store on Haussman Blvd, that the little red triangular critter being introduced as the official mascot of the 2024 Paris Olympics is, of all things, a hat!
Printemps had a little “merch” corner set up for Les Phryges, which are based on the Phrygian cap, an “iconic symbol of freedom and the French Republic.”
The Olympic version of Phryges is an 24” felt triangle bearing a friendly smile, big blue eyes, and two stubby legs. (The Paralympics Phryge looks much the same, but sports one leg and a runner’s blade prosthesis.)
A nicely-lettered plaque next to the display gave us a brief history of les Phryges and their symbolism during the first French Revolution. This, it seems, was the “statement” headgear for late 18th Century Revolutionaries (the French, as we know, were protesting one thing and another way back then, but with even more reason and motive).
Marianne, the symbol of the French Republic (rather like Uncle Sam) is usually depicted wearing one. The French National Archives have records of Phrygian caps also being worn during the construction of Paris’ Note Dame cathedral in 1163, the work to build the Eiffel Tower, and the Paris Olympic Games in 1924, so the headgear has a long history.
The Olympics are still several months away, but we were somewhat puzzled by the dearth of Olympic merchandise currently available in Paris. Printemps had quite a bunch of cute little Phryges, some key chains and tee shirts; a nearby Mono Prix (the French version of Target, complete with bull’s eye logo)
had a rack of “unofficial,” less expensive tees, magnets and key chains, along with some little sacks of Olympic candy. But none of the numerous souvenir kiosks in the 8th Arrondissement, where we stayed, displayed anything at all related to the upcoming Summer Olympics.
Paris itself, however, was very obviously sprucing up for summer 2024. Flower-planting and tree-trimming were going on everywhere, and temporary fences and barriers throughout the city indicated that a lot more work will be done before late July, when the Olympians will be in town.
To view photos of Phyrges and learn more about their history, visit: https://www.paris2024.org/en/mascots/