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Origin and history

The Museum of Archaeology and History of Maine, officially named Musée Jean-Claude-Boulard Carré Plantagenet, is located in Le Mans, in the Saint-Nicolas district. Inaugurated on 19 June 2009 after a restoration led by architect Bernard Altabegoïty, he occupied the former buildings of the Daughters-God convent, founded in the Middle Ages under the rule of St Augustine. This convent, which was abolished in the 18th century, then served as a hospital for elderly and indigent priests before being sold as a national good during the Revolution. Part of the site was acquired by the printer Charles Monnoyer, giving his name to the old printing house that housed the museum before its renovation.

The museum project dates back to 1846, when the mayor of Le Mans, Auguste Trotté de la Roche, decided to create a Museum of Historical Monuments to save ancient objects threatened with destruction. A ten-member commission, including figures such as Charles Drouet (divisional inspector of the Société française d'archéologie) and Eugène Hucher, organizes his installation in the basements of the municipal theatre. In 1903 the museum was transferred to the crypt of the former collegiate church of Saint-Pierre-la-Cour, under the direction of Ferdinand Hucher. Deleted in 1940, its collections were then dispersed between the Tesse and Allonnes museums.

The current Plantagenet Square extends over 3,360 m2, including 1,400 m2 dedicated to permanent collections covering five historical periods, from Prehistory to the Middle Ages. Among his master pieces are the treasure of the Sablons, the Shroud of Saint-Bertrand, the Plantagenet enamel, and six gisers from the Abbey of Etival-en-Charnie. The museum also includes a 120-seat auditorium, combining heritage and modern technologies. Its total cost (construction and development) amounted to around € 21.2 million.

The origins of the collections date back to 1799, when Le Mans became one of the first cities in France to open a post-revolutionary museum, installed in the galleries of the abbey of Couture (now the Sarthe prefecture). This first museum, free from its opening, presented mainly the objects of the Marshal of Tesse, whose descendant had emigrated to Switzerland. He then moved to the Tesse Museum, dedicated to fine arts, before the desire to preserve local historical monuments — carried by societies such as Arcisse de Caumont — gave birth to the Plantagenet Square project.

The museum is served by Jacobins station - The T2 line of the Le Mans tramway, making it easier to access. Its name pays tribute to the Plantagenet dynasty, closely linked to the history of Maine, while its contemporary architecture dialogues with the medieval remains of the convent and the palace of the Counts of Maine located opposite.

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