Contrary to its name, Paris’ Petit Palais, or Small Palace, isn’t really that small.

Only when it’s compared to the significantly larger and no less generically named Grand Palais, or Large Palace, does it seem anything other than a stunning, expansive feat of architecture.

The Large Palace and Small Palace were both built for the World’s Fair held in Paris in the year 1900. A World’s Fair was basically a big fair that showcased the most powerful and prosperous nations, who would come together to boast about their many advancements. One of the most grandiose to date, the fair of 1900 highlighted the best artistic, scientific, technological, and cultural advancements of the past hundred years within large pavilions and elegant museums.

The city of Paris reeeally got up on its high horse for the occasion: they powered a whole building with electric light bulbs, painted the Eiffel Tower yellow, and even built two large museums (the Small and Large Palaces) to emphasize the “we’re the best” attitude of French capital city at this time (well, that attitude never really left). It wasn’t all fun and games, however. This was a time of heavy Imperialism, and these fairs were also a place for them to showcase objects (and people—sigh) stolen from colonized nations. Upsetting but true.

The Small Palace would house the collection of French art during the fair (you know, all those prestigious Monets, Delacroixs, and Courbets), so of course it needed to be the statement piece of the new century. They couldn’t just hire any ol’ person off the street to design the building. In true Parisian fashion, they held an elaborate competition to see who would receive this important commission. A few lucky individuals were given a task that would be any architect's dream: to envision a full revamp an old building (the Palais de Industrie), with complete creative freedom to keep, change, or demolish whichever parts of the building they wanted.

The lucky winner was a man by the name of Charles Girault, and the renovation was a career defining moment for him, as many other commissions came out of the woodwork after everyone saw his nice craftsmanship. His work even inspired the design of some other buildings, including the Fine Arts Museum of Santiago.

Oh, and in case you ever plan on visiting this museum, you’ll be happy to know that it’s totally free to enter. That’s right—stunning architecture and fancy French artwork on a budget. To top it all off, if you find yourself experiencing yourself dozing off, you can pop over to a small inner courtyard cafe to sip coffee next to a lush, green garden. Considered by many to be an oasis in the midst of a bustling city, the Small Palace gives both the Louvre and the Musee d’Orsay a run for their money, so that you don't have to spend a ton of yours.