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Origin and history

The Léon Marès Museum is housed in the Château de Montrottier, located in Lovagny (Haute-Savoie). This castle, as well as the collections it houses, were left in 1916 by Léon Marès to the Florimontane society, an institution founded in 1606 by François de Sales and the lawyer Antoine Favre, father of Vaugelas. The collections cover fields as varied as archaeology, fine arts, natural sciences, ethnology and military objects, reflecting the eclectic interests of its donor.

The museum is distinguished by rare pieces, such as bronze bas-reliefs by German sculptors Peter Vischer and his son Hans (16th century), originally intended for the Funeral Chapel of the Fuggers, or fragments of a grid, some of which are preserved at the Germanic Museum of Nuremberg. The collections also include weapons and armor, religious objects, carpets, ceramics, and artifacts from Africa and the Far East, illustrating the diversity of Léon Marès' acquisitions.

The Château de Montrottier, associated with the museum, is a historical monument in itself. The bequest of 1916 preserved this heritage and made it accessible to the public, under the aegis of Florimontane society, which is still active today. The museum benefits from the label "Musée de France", guaranteeing the quality of its collections and museumography.

The themes covered range from religious art (especially from the German Renaissance) to local and regional history, manuscripts, incunables and books of bibliophilia. This wealth makes it a reference point for lovers of history, art and curiosities, anchored in the territory of Haute-Savoie and the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region.

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