Start of collections 1970 (≈ 1970)
Max and Denise Dejean begin their ethnological collections.
4 avril 1982
Open to the public
Open to the public 4 avril 1982 (≈ 1982)
Inauguration of the Niaux Peasant Museum.
21 juin 1982
Official Inauguration
Official Inauguration 21 juin 1982 (≈ 1982)
Ceremony marking the launch of the museum.
1987
Film collaboration
Film collaboration 1987 (≈ 1987)
Objects used in *The Beatrice Passion*.
1996
Change of name
Change of name 1996 (≈ 1996)
Becomes *Pyrenean Museum* to expand its reach.
2001
Establishment of the Association
Establishment of the Association 2001 (≈ 2001)
Support via the Association of Friends of the Museum.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Key figures
Max Dejean - Founder and President
Co-founder of the museum, president of the association in 2001.
Denise Dejean - Co-founder
Author and collector of ethnological objects with Max.
Origin and history
The Pyrenean Museum of Niaux is a museum of ethnology, arts and popular traditions founded in 1982 by Max and Denise Dejean, specialized authors on Ariège and the Pyrenees. Located in Niaux in the Vicdessos Valley, it was born from their passion for collecting ethnological objects, photographs and oral testimonies, mainly focused on Upper Ariège from the 1970s. The couple built a building in 1981 to house their collections, officially opening the Niaux Peasant Museum on June 21, 1982.
The museum has gradually expanded, both in its collections and in its infrastructure, including parking lots and diversified activities. In 1996, it became the Pyrenean Museum to reflect its expanded scope. Her objects even served as sets for Bertrand Tavernier's film La Passion Béatrice in 1987. In 2001, the Association of Friends of the Pyrenean Museum of Niaux was founded, chaired by Max Dejean, to support its development.
The museum's collections include several thousand objects illustrating Pyrenean daily life: pastoralism, milling, glass and iron work, and religion. Among its remarkable pieces is the largest known collection of crespals (monoxyl containers carved from a trunk). These objects bear witness to the domestic and artisanal activities of the Ariegean Pyrenees, from ancestral traditions until the dawn of modernity.
