Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Saint-Germain museum of Auxerre occupies the buildings of Saint-Germain Abbey, founded in the 5th century by Queen Clotilde. This site, a witness to the Carolingian Renaissance in the 9th century, houses the necropolis of the bishops of Auxerre since the death of Saint Germain (378–448). His crypts, decorated with exceptional frescoes, illustrate Carolingian art around the tomb of the saint. The Abbey was also a major intellectual center with its scriptorium and school, one of Europe's cultural centres.

The museum's collections come from revolutionary confiscations, donations (such as those of Riocreux or Louvois), and local excavations. They cover prehistory, protohistory, and Gallo-Roman era, with lapidary pieces from Auxerre and merovingian objects. The numismatic collections, enriched by bequests like Ernest Gariel, complete this panorama. Although the museum has paintings from the sixteenth to twentieth centuries, only ancient and medieval works are exhibited today.

Among the treasures of the museum, the Lady of Auxerre, Greek masterpiece exchanged with the Louvre in 1909, symbolizes her influence. Monastic dormitories now house archaeological collections, while Romanesque halls, Gothic church and classical cloister reflect 15 centuries of history. The Abbey, listed as a Historical Monument, remains a key place to understand spiritual and artistic life in the West.

The museum benefits from the label Musée de France and highlights local sites such as the necropolises of Venizy or the excavations of Auxerre-Vaulabelle. Its official address, 2 bis place Saint-Germain in Auxerre (Yonne), makes it a tourist hub of Burgundy-Franche-Comté. The Carolingian crypts, with their unique wall paintings, and the pre-nef of the 11th century, make it a remarkable architectural ensemble.

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