Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Lons-le-Saunier Museum was created in 1817 by the Société d'Emulation du Jura, an association dedicated to the enhancement of local heritage. Originally, the collections were managed by this company before being transferred to the city in 1857, which had built a dedicated building in 1851 to accommodate them. This museum, originally multipurpose, experienced a split in the 1980s, giving rise to two distinct entities: a Museum of Fine Arts and a Museum of Archaeology.

Since the 2000s, an ambitious project aims to reunite these collections within a new site: the former Hôtel-Dieu in Lons-le-Saunier, a building largely classified as a historical monument. This project is part of a desire to modernize and enhance the Jura heritage, while preserving the architectural heritage of the Hôtel-Dieu. The museum's collections cover a variety of fields, ranging from fine arts (with works by Jean-Joseph Perraud or Gustave Courbet) to archaeology (including the Palafitte sites of Chalain and Clairvaux, classified at UNESCO).

The museum is also known for its natural science resources, including rare fossils such as platheosaurs, as well as grass and minerals typical of the Jura. A library, listed in the additional inventory of the Historic Monuments, completes this set. The museum benefits from the label Musée de France, highlighting its cultural and heritage importance in the Burgundy-Franche-Comté region.

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