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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The Palais de l'Archevêché d'Aix-en-Provence, also known as the former bishopric, is one of the 19 archepiscopal palaces of France. Built between 1650 and 1730 under the direction of architect Laurent Vallon, it embodies the ecclesiastical fascist of the Ancien Régime en Provence. Its buildings, made of Bibémus stone typical of the region, housed the highest Provencal Catholic institution. The west facade, completed in 1715, has a monumental portal decorated by the sculptor Toro, while the double-revolution staircase (1670) marks the originality of its diagonal composition.

The site, occupied since ancient times, reveals Roman remains discovered in 1984-1985, including insulae potentially linked to an ancient rampart. In the Middle Ages, the bishops of Aix transferred their residence there in the 14th century, gradually expanding the palace. East wing, built in 1447 by Robert Damiani, and the royal visits (Charles IX, Catherine de Medici, Louis XIII) in the 16th-17th centuries underline its political importance. Anne of Austria and Louis XIV stayed there in 1660.

In the 18th century, archbishops such as Raymond de Boisgelin (1770-1790) played a major cultural and social role. Boisgelin, deputy of clergy in the General States, voted to abolish privileges while defending ecclesiastical property. In 1772 he reduced a shortage of wheat and contributed to the relative peace of Aix during the Revolution. The weapons of the present portal are those of Bishop Bausset-Roquefort (archbishop in 1817). Ranked a Historic Monument in 1942, the palace has been home to a tapestry museum since 1909.

The Musée du Palais, labeled Musées de France, exhibits tapestries from the 17th to 18th centuries in three ensembles: Les Grotesques (1680, after Jean Bérain), LeHistoire de Don Quixote (1735-1745, the only world model after Natoire), and Les Jeux Russes (1770, after Leprince). These works, woven at the Beauvais factory, come from episcopal collections or sponsors such as Pierre Griniod d'Orsay. Since 1979, the museum has enriched contemporary textile art and a performing arts section, linked to the Lyric Art Festival in Aix.

The Archdiocese Theatre, integrated into the Palace, has been hosting the International Lyric Art Festival since 1948. A House of opera is envisaged to centralize the lyrical collections (costums, decors, models) from the Festival and the theatre of the Jeu de Paume. The museum also preserves portraits of archbishops, furniture from the seventeenth to eighteenth centuries, and archives of local history. Its label Musée de France and its Historic Monument classification make it a major heritage place in Provence.

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