Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Museum Arlaten - Musée de Provence, founded in 1896 by Frédéric Mistral, is a museum dedicated to ethnography in the region. Set in the former Laval-Castellane hotel, a historic building that has been listed several times (the temple in 1905, buildings in 1907, chapel in 1921, and part of the 18th century in 1944), it houses collections reflecting the arts, ethnology and history of Arles. This project is born when ethnography is concerned with European regions on the margins of industrial progress.

In 1899, the museum opened thanks to donations collected after the publication of a collection manual co-written by Mistral and Dr.Émile Marignan. The collections are then transferred to the Bouches-du-Rhône department. In 1904, thanks to his Nobel Prize in literature, Mistral acquired the Laval-Castellane Hotel, a former Jesuit college, to permanently install the museum. Jean Granaud inaugurated the new version in 1909.

After Mistral's death in 1914, the museum remained under the management of the Arlaten Museum Committee, and Fernand Benoit became curator in the 1930s. In 1999, on the occasion of its centenary, the museum was transferred to the Bouches-du-Rhône department, becoming a departmental museum. An agreement is signed with the founding committee to ensure its sustainability.

Closed in 2009 for a major renovation financed at 22.5 million euros by the departmental council, the Museon Arlaten reopens in 2021 after 11 years of work. The renovation includes the acquisition of the Jesuit chapel for temporary exhibitions and the creation of CERCO, a 2000 m2 conservation centre in the old SNCF workshop of the city. The museum journey is completely redesigned, divided into five chronological sequences and a section dedicated to temporary exhibitions.

The museum is distinguished by its inclusive approach, obtaining in 2021 the label 'Tourism and Handicap' for its four components (auditor, motor, visual, psychic) and the National Prize of Accessible Tourism in 2024. During its closing, the 'Outside the Walls' programme maintained the visibility of the collections through exhibitions, concerts and workshops. Since its reopening, the Arlaten Museum has actively collaborated with local cultural events such as the Rencontres de la Photographie and the Festival du Dessin d'Arles.

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