Lorraine museum: France

This is a regional museum that would be much more elucidating to those with a little familiarity with the history of the province. We knew nothing about the dukes of Lorraine when we entered, so our tour of the museum amounted to a great deal of studying and question-and-answer sessions–hard work getting to the bottom of “significance” and “meaning”! We thought we’d have to settle for basic facts, but we left with some understanding of past life in Lorraine.

As if by osmosis, we learned, but our appreciation of what we were viewing was drastically impaired by our own ignorance. To make a contrast that many may understand, Normandy did not present this problem! There, everything could be associated with things we already knew from English history, and so everything had meaning. Now that I have reversed (a little) my ignorance of Lorraine’s history, I need to return so that I can appreciate tapestries, glassware, furniture, portraits and paintings of famous celebrations.

The Ducal Palace

The building itself was a prized early Renaissance structure created by the Dukes, beginning with Rene the second in 1502, and its important visitors included Mary Stuart (later Queen of Scots), Henry the second, and Louis the fourteenth. The entrance to the museum is the reconstructed Grand’ Rue palace gate that is the earliest example of Renaissance styling in eastern France, an example that incorporates some flamboyant gothic. Above the door, we admired the equestrian statue of Duke Antoine.

Archaeological collections, fine art, and modern warfare

Prehistoric, Gallo-Roman, and Merovingian periods are represented in artifacts that display remarkable artwork and attest to the talent for fashioning finery that even early inhabitants displayed. From medieval times, there is a collection of religious sculpture and funereal art that I would appreciate more now after studying. The Galerie des Cerfs or Deer Galley is housed in the ceremonial stateroom and contains the most tapestries and decoration familiar to the Dukes. These are mixed with the fine art of George de la Tour (1593-1652), Baroque-era painter and Jacques Callot (1592-1635), engraver, etcher, and painter, who was born and died in Nancy. Military items represent the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

The Dukes

Stanislas is well-represented, more than any other dukes of Lorraine, and items relating to him are displayed in several rooms. This astrological clock was in one of those rooms. He is one of the Dukes not buried in the Cordeliers Convent here. (He is in the Cathedral with his wife.) Admission to the baroque tombs is free with entrance to the museum, but for some reason, we weren’t permitted to tour the recreated interior of the convent. Too bad, for the tombs might have enabled us to keep straight the time periods of the different dukes. I asked the lady at the desk if she had a family tree diagram, and she sold me one for 1.5 euro. Now, I’m finally ready to tour this museum! To prepare yourself, start here.