The most elegant and geometrically harmonious of all high Baroque gardens. Vaux was designed, before Versailles, by Andre le Nôtre and Louis II le Vau. The composition is perfectly proportioned and soothingly harmonious, with the gardens organised on a central axis. The axial principle derives from Bramante and was recommended by Andre Mollet. At Vaux, the axis passes through parterres, over basins of water, and into forests. Brilliant use of the landform allows many surprises. Yet the composition is balanced from every point of view. The garden was laid out for a rich financier, Fouquet, and had many statues which Louis XIV removed after casting the owner into jail for being overly[...]