The Musée Carnavalet hardly rates a mention in most Paris guide books; consequently, visitors are more likely flock to the Louvre, the Musée D’Orsay, the Rodin Museum or the Pompidou Centre. This is a sad oversight. The Carnavalet Museum should be high on the list for people who truly adore Paris, because it deals with the long history of this magnificent city, and does so in a unique way. Furthermore, unlike most museums in Paris, the Carnavalet is free!
Where is the Musée Carnavalet?
Musée Carnavalet is at 23 Rue de Sévigné, just off Rue Rambuteau, in the area known as the Marais, quite close to the interesting old Jewish Quarter. The closest Metro stations are St Paul (Line 1) or Chemin Vert (Line 8). It’s also an easy walk from the Pompidou Centre. It’s open from 10 am to 6 pm, but is closed Mondays and public holidays.
What Makes the Carnavalet Museum unusual?
The museum occupies two Hotels (meaning mansions or palaces, not tourist accommodation) with a connecting passage between the two. They are the Hôtel Le Peletier de Saint-Fargeau and the Hôtel Carnavalet. The latter was, from 1677 to 1696, the home of the celebrated Madame Sevigne, after whom the street was named. The buildings are beautifully preserved, have formal gardens attached, and, as they capture the lifestyle of the 17th century nobility, they are a museum in themselves.
Artifacts in the Musee Carnavalet
Like most museums, the Carnavalet uses various artifacts to represent the past. Thus, there are prehistoric pirogues (boats) made from tree trunks; Napoleon’s mortuary mask, uniform and pistol; and articles used in the storming of the Bastille.
Works of Art in the Musee Carnavalet
The curators have also uses magnificent original works of art to tell the history of Paris. Just as photographers record great events for posterity today, many great artists of the past tried to commit to canvas scenes of change. Consequently, there are paintings of the fire that destroyed the opera house in xxx, scenes showing the building of the Pont Neuf and the clearing of houses that once lined all the bridges of Paris.
One particularly startling painting shows a typical idyllic rural scene with farmers working and horses drinking at a stream. Behind the mid-ground tree belt looms the giant gold dome of the Invalides, a reminder that several hundred years ago, the city occupied a much smaller area and these great monumental buildings were being constructed in a rural setting.
The art work reflects all eras, and include some excellent Impressionist works showing elegant ladies holding up long frocks to cross wet Paris streets, various salon scenes, and even a painting to celebrate the arrival of the first automobile in Paris.
Furniture and Furnishings in the Musee Carnavalet
The Carnavalet Museum is divided up into floors and sections that represent each epoch of French history from the prehistory, with remains found when excavating for a building in the riverside suburb of Bercy, through Roman era, 16th Century 17th Century, the Revolution right to 20th Century developments.
The rooms of the mansions that house each era are decorated and furnished in a style that reflects the era. Thus, it is like walking into Madame Sévigné’s living room or boudoir and inspecting the works of art she has collected and her fine bric a brac and collectibles.
Many wings of the museum are less like museums than the stately homes they once were. There are rooms dedicated to Chinoiserie, others starkly medieval, with enormous fireplaces occupying most of one wall, and yet more reflecting the tastes of the nobility during the reigns of Louis XV and Louis XVI. There is also a reconstruction of Marcel Proust’s bedroom.
The Carnavalet Museum Should be Top of the Tourist List
The clever concept combines the tradition of opening a stately home to the public with displaying fine works of art and other artifacts, all dedicated to exploring the long history and development of as grand city. It is available free to everyone and is easy to access. It makes a great start to exploring Paris. The visitor can see many of the great sights and buildings they will certainly visit in their original settings, or under development, or sometimes, even in the process of destruction. For a detailed look at the eras covered by the Carnavalet museum, see this Suite101 article.
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