Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Musée de la lunette-Viseum, located in Bellefontaine in the Haut-Jura, was born from the industrial heritage linked to the Bienne River. As early as the 16th century, the latter fed mills and metallurgical workshops, producing nails, clocks, and then glasses from the early 19th century. Moonlight activity, initially seasonal and family in workshop farms, became a worldwide export specialty a century later. Vocational training, via the School of Industry Practice (19th century) and Victor Bérard High School, plays a key role in this development.

In the 1970s, former beavers saved this heritage by creating collections exposed to the public from 1983. The museum, both scientific and societal, explores optics, design and fashion, while sheltering the Essilor-Pierre Marly collection (2,500 objects tracing the world history of the bezel since the 13th century). It also included the Jourdain collection, donated in 1877 by François-Honoré Jourdain, a Lyon native of Morez: 85 paintings and art objects, including landscapes and historical paintings.

The building, with a curved roof combining grey stone and bay windows, offers an interactive museum trail. Modules designed by high school students explain eye function or visual defects, while optical illusions complete the visit. The museum is part of the Viseum ensemble, dedicated to moonlight activity, and highlights a local know-how that has become emblematic.

The Morezian bezel industry illustrates a typical transition from a rural and artisanal economy (metallurgy, watchmaking) to an industrial export specialization. The mobilization of former professionals in the 1970s demonstrates the attachment to this heritage, now valued as a labeled museum in France.

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