The Carnavalet Museum – History of Paris (Le musée Carnavalet – Histoire de Paris) is the municipal museum dedicated to the history of Paris from the origins of the city to the present day. Located in the Marais district at no. 23 rue de Sévigné in Paris (France), in the 3rd arrondissement, it presents collections on various themes: memories of the French Revolution, historical paintings, sculptures, furniture and decorations from the 17th and 18th centuries, objects art, prints, etc.
The museum is made up of the Carnavalet hotel itself, and the Le Peletier hotel in Saint-Fargeau, connected by a gallery located on the first floor. Its visitable spaces represent an area of 3,900 m2, i.e. a route of 1.5 km. Temporary exhibition spaces (360 m2) are also available.
3,800 works and objects are exhibited in the permanent exhibition. Among the hundred rooms that make up this route, 34 are rooms with decorations, mainly from the 17th and 18th centuries. These rooms, sometimes called “period rooms”, constitute one of the particularities of the museum.
The museum preserves more than 625,000 works, objects and documents, varied in their nature: furniture and decorative art objects, paintings, sculptures, archaeological collections, but also photographs, manuscripts and autographs, posters, prints, drawings, coins and medals , small objects of history and memory…
The museum also conserves and exhibits collections related to the history of art and the history of France.
It is one of the fourteen museums in the city of Paris managed since January 1, 2013 by the public administrative establishment Paris Musées. The museum reopened in spring 2021, after five years of renovation.
During the work, the museography was completely redesigned. While maintaining the most famous rooms and works (Marcel Proust’s bedroom, the royal family’s bedroom in the Temple tower, etc.), the renovation has led to the route being presented chronologically, from Prehistory. Certain collections are thus particularly highlighted, such as the archaeological, numismatic, photographic and graphic collections. Nearly 60% of the works have been renewed, and nearly 4,000 works have been restored.
Address: 23 Rue de Sévigné, 75003 Paris, France.
Working hours:
Tuesday 10 AM–6 PM
Wednesday 10 AM–6 PM
Thursday 10 AM–6 PM
Friday 10 AM–6 PM
Saturday 10 AM–6 PM
Sunday 10 AM–6 PM
Monday Closed
Artwork: Portrait of Juliette Recamier
Founded: December 1880
Architects: François Mansart, Pierre Lescot, Pierre Bullet
Architectural styles: Renaissance architecture, Classical architecture.
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