Musee de Cluny: France

The Musee de Cluny, officially known as Musee National du Moyen Âge, is a museum in Paris, France. It is located in the Ve arrondissement at 6 Place Paul Painleve, south of the Boulevard Saint-Germain, between the Boulevard Saint-Michel and the Rue Saint-Jacques.

The building

The structure, first started in 1334 combines Gothic and Renaissance elements and was formerly the town house of the abbots of Cluny; it was made into a public museum in 1833 and apart from the name it no longer possesses anything originally connected with the abbey.

It is perhaps the most outstanding example still extant of civic architecture in medieval Paris.

Over the centuries the structure has been many things. Most recently, in 1843, Alexandre du Sommerard, an avid collector of medieval artifacts, bought the property and had it converted into a museum. However, the building he purchased had in turn been partially constructed on the remains of Gallo-Roman baths dating from the 3rd century (known as the Thermes de Cluny), which are famous in their own right and which may still be visited. In fact, the museum itself actually consists of two buildings: the frigidarium (”cooling room”), where the remains of the Thermes de Cluny are, and the Hotel de Cluny itself, wherein reside its impressive collections.

The museum

This museum houses a variety of important artifacts dating to the Middle Ages. In particular, it is renowned for its tapestry collection, which includes La Dame a la Licorne (The Lady and the Unicorn) from the so-called tapestry cycle of the same name, consisting of a series of six.

Other notable works stored there include Gothic sculptures from the 7th and 8th centuries. There are also works of gold, ivory, antique furnishings, and illuminated manuscripts.