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Origin and history

The Nissim-de-Camondo Museum, inaugurated in December 1936, is housed in the mansion of Moïse de Camondo, built between 1911 and 1914 by architect René Sergent. Inspired by the Petit Trianon de Versailles, this neo-classical building borders the Parc Monceau and houses a unique collection of 18th-century French furniture and art objects. Moses of Camondo, heir to a dynasty of sepharad bankers, gathered rare pieces from the French aristocracy, bought from the greatest antique dealers of the time like the Seligmann brothers.

The hotel was bequeathed to the Central Union of Decorative Arts (UCAD) in memory of his son Nissim, a pilot who died in action in 1917. Moses' will required an unchanged presentation of the collections, reflecting his ambition to reconstruct an 18th-century aristocratic home. During the Second World War, the works were evacuated to Valençay Castle, thus escaping Nazi spoliations. The Camondo family, deported in 1943-44, disappeared almost entirely in Auschwitz, leaving no direct heirs.

Ranked a historic monument in 2005, the museum now retains its original layout, with richly furnished living rooms, a library with precious bindings, and intimate rooms such as the porcelain cabinet or private apartments. The bathrooms and the kitchen illustrate the modern comfort integrated discreetly in this historic setting. The legacy of Moïse de Camondo, marked by family tragedy, offers a unique testimony of French taste and the history of collections at the beginning of the twentieth century.

The museum was restored from the 1980s thanks to an international patronage, giving shine to fabrics, furniture and objects. The collections include major works by Riesener, Oeben, Vigée-Lebrun, or porcelain services by Sèvres and Meissen. The almost total absence of Jewish references in the home reflects the desire for assimilation of the family, although some liturgical objects remain, such as chabbat candlesticks.

The museum's history is also that of its survival during the occupation: its status as a public legacy and its recent opening in 1936 protected it from Nazi seizures, especially targeting private Jewish property. The works, hidden in Valençay, were saved in extremis in 1944 when the SS considered destroying the castle. Since then, the museum has celebrated both 18th century French art and the memory of Camondo, a family of patrons who disappeared in the Shoah.

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