Exhibits at Quai Branly

These are carved finials from New Caledonia, shown at the Quai Branly Museum. It was founded just four years ago to much controversy. In the words of one account, it is "dedicated to the arts and civilisations of Africa, Asia, Oceania and the Americas".

Designed by the architect Jean Nouvel, it's an ultramodern building that is daunting to visit. To enter, you follow a gradually rising, curving ramp until you arrive at the exhibits, which are arranged in a lengthy labyrinth of curving corridors. There are no straight walls except at the edges, as here, where you can see out through weirdly perforated curtains. There's little general lighting, and virtually all the exhibits are spotlighted in near darkness. But the quality of the objects is generally superb, and many of the presentations are stunning.