Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Musée Carnavalet – Histoire de Paris is the oldest municipal museum in the City of Paris, dedicated to the history of the capital since its origins. Located in two private hotels in the Marais, the Hotel Carnavalet (XVIth century) and the Hotel Le Peletier de Saint-Fargeau (XVIIth century), it houses more than 625,000 works, objects and documents, covering periods ranging from prehistory to contemporary times. Its collections include souvenirs of the French Revolution, historical paintings, sculptures, 17th and 18th century furniture, prints, photographs and decorative art objects.

The Hotel Carnavalet, built between 1548 and 1560 for Jacques de Ligneris, President of the Paris Parliament, is a rare example of Renaissance architecture in Paris. It was enlarged by François Mansart in the 17th century and housed the Marquise de Sévigné from 1677 to 1696. Acquired by the City of Paris in 1866 under the impetus of Baron Haussmann, it became a museum in 1880 after planning works incorporating architectural elements saved from destruction, such as the arch of Nazareth or the facades of missing hotels. The Le Peletier hotel, built in 1688 by Pierre Bullet, was annexed to the museum in 1989.

The museum underwent a complete renovation between 2016 and 2021, modernizing its spaces and rethinking its chronological path, from Prehistory to the contemporary era. His iconic pieces include Marcel Proust's room, the ballroom at the Wendel hotel decorated by José-Maria Sert, and the Fouquet jewelery designed by Alfons Mucha. The museum also preserves archaeological, numismatic and photographic collections, as well as Parisian interior reconstructions of the 17th and 18th centuries, called period rooms.

The permanent collections, enriched with 4,000 restored works and 60% renewed works, now extend into the 21st century. The museum places particular emphasis on accessibility, with 10% of the works presented at the height of children and almost 150 multimedia content. A historical and digital resource centre, scheduled for 2022, will explore the 580,000 works of the collections, some of which are already accessible online via the City of Paris Museum Portal.

The Musée Carnavalet has been run by the Paris Museums public establishment since 2013. It has been listed as a Historical Monument since 1846 and has been part of the Marais Conservation and Enhancement Plan since 1965. Its architecture, combining Renaissance and classicism, as well as its eclectic collections, make it a must to understand the history and evolution of Paris.

Among the notable events in its history was the fire at the Town Hall in 1871, which destroyed the first collections stored, as well as the various extension phases, such as the annexation of the Le Peletier hotel in 1989. The museum has also been the setting for films and documentaries, such as Free and Sleeping (2014) or the show Secrets d'Histoire (2015).

Collection

Les collections du musée Carnavalet sont riches de plusieurs centaines de milliers de pièces dont seule une partie est exposée. Le parcours, qui va de l'Antiquité jusqu'à aujourd'hui, comprend des oeuvres très variées : vestiges archéologiques, peintures, sculptures, dessins, médailles et monnaies, gravures, photographies anciennes, maquettes de monuments, mobilier, enseignes, portraits, ainsi qu'un ensemble unique de témoignages sur la Révolution Française.

La reconstitution d'intérieurs parisiens d'autrefois a également fait beaucoup pour la renommée du musée.

Du 2 octobre 2016 à 2020, le musée est fermé pour rénovation complète et création d'espaces événementiels et de restauration.

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