Villemin, Garden in the 10th arrondissement, Paris, France
Jardin Villemin is a public garden in the 10th arrondissement of Paris, bordered by the Canal Saint-Martin, Rue des Récollets, and Avenue de Verdun. It features curved paths, lawn areas, playgrounds for children of different ages, a bandstand, sports courts, and a shared community garden plot called "Le Poireau Agile".
The site first housed a convent of the Récollets before construction of a military hospital began in 1870, named after the doctor Jean-Antoine Villemin, who conducted research on tuberculosis. The hospital closed in 1968, and the garden was laid out on the grounds in 1977, with the monumental entrance gate and parts of the chapel left standing.
The garden was officially renamed in 2023 after Mahsa Jina Amini, a young Iranian woman who died in 2022 following her arrest and became a symbol for women's rights in Iran. A memorial marks her memory in the garden, and a separate stone honors Jewish children from the neighborhood who were killed during the Second World War.
The main entrance is on Rue des Récollets, close to the Gare de l'Est metro station, making it easy to reach by public transport. The garden opens early in the morning and closes in the early evening, with hours varying by season.
The fountain in the garden, depicting a young Triton and made by the sculptor Marie Auguste Martin, was originally part of a series of fountains installed around 1900 to decorate Faubourg Saint-Martin. It was later moved to the garden when the site was redeveloped, so it no longer stands where it was first placed.
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