Opening of the museum 1997 (≈ 1997)
Inauguration of the museum in Marseille.
2020
Closing of the museum
Closing of the museum 2020 (≈ 2020)
Final closure of public visits.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Key figures
Marcel Carbonel - Santonnier and collector
Founder of the exhibition collection.
Philippe Renoux-Carbonel - Museum curator
Head of the museum during its opening.
Émilie Puccinelli-Meunier - Best worker in France
Competition exhibited in the museum.
Origin and history
The Musée du santon Marcel Carbonel was inaugurated in 1997 in Marseille to exhibit Marcel Carbonel's private collection, a renowned santonnier. Throughout his career, he had assembled original pieces related to Nativity and santons, made from a variety of materials: cooked or raw clay, chewed paper, carved wood, Murano spun glass, plaster, ceramic, porcelain, corn, cork and fabrics. These objects reflected his attachment to the originality of creations, a principle which he also applied to the works of his santonic colleagues.
The museum's collection also included historical elements, such as the competition of Meilleurs travailleurs de France by Marcel Carbonel and Émilie Puccinelli-Meunier, as well as plaster moulds by Jean-Louis Lagnel and Auguste Pellegrini, two Marseille statuary. These pieces illustrated the evolution of techniques and styles in the craft of santons, an emblematic know-how of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Until its closure in 2020, the museum has discovered this artisanal and cultural heritage.
Since 2020, the museum has been closed to the public. During his years of activity, he was directed by Philippe Renoux-Carbonel, who was the curator. The museum highlighted not only the work of Marcel Carbonel, but also that of other artisans, thus helping to preserve and transmit the tradition of the santons of Provence, a key element of Marseille and Provençal cultural heritage.
