Former orangery, built in 1852 by architect Firmin Bourgeois and completed by his successor, Ludovico Visconti, to house the orange trees in the Tuileries gardens. A long stone box, glazed to the south (on the Seine side) and blind to the north (on the garden side), the building was soberly decorated - as befits a utilitarian building - but in keeping with the classical architectural repertoire - to match its proximity to the Place de la Concorde and the Tuileries Palace (now demolished).
During the Third Republic, the building was used as an equipment depot, an examination room or accommodation facility for mobilized soldiers, a multi-purpose venue for sporting events, and so on. In 1921, it was finally allocated to the Beaux-arts administration, which made it, like its neighbor the Jeu de Paume, an annex of the Musée du Luxembourg, predecessor of the Musée National d'Art Moderne.
