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Key figures

Origin and history

The Old Havre Museum finds its origins in the collections of the first Havre Museum, founded in 1843 and opened in 1845. These varied collections (paintings, sculptures, art objects, archaeological and ethnographic collections) were gradually redistributed after 1876, with transfers to the abbey of Graville or the former Palace of Justice. The distinction between Fine Arts and other collections was affirmed, especially after the destruction of the original museum during the bombings of 1944. After the war, a reorganization led to the opening of the museum of the Old Havre in 1949/1950 in the hotel Dubocage de Bléville, the only historic building spared.

The museum settles in the former residence of Michel Joseph Dubocage de Bléville (1676–1727), a navigator and collector, whose cabinet of curiosities is partially reconstituted. The collections evoke the urban history of Le Havre (XVIe–XXe siècles), with major iconographic backgrounds: photographs of Augustin Normand workshops, prints, drawings, and objects showing port and industrial activities. After a closure in 2004, the museum reopens in 2010 after restoration, highlighting its architecture (17th century: wood and brick strips) and its French-style garden.

The current collections include exceptional pieces related to Dubocage de Bléville, such as Chinese terracotta statuettes (early 18th century), porcelains, or an ostrich egg. The museum also preserves photographic archives (priem fonds, Mélissen) documenting Le Havre before its destruction in 1944. Since 2012, he has joined the Museums of Art and History of Le Havre, alongside the Malraux Museum and the Priory of Graville, with a strengthened heritage and memorial vocation.

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