Museum of Art and History
Set in the in the heart of the city, in a modern building inaugurated in 1997, the Musée d’Art et d’Histoire boasts one of the finest collections of art and archaeology in Champagne and Burgundy.
Ever since the 19th century, enlightened collectors and generous donors have expanded the museum’s outstanding collections of archaeological artefacts ranging from the prehistorical to the Gallo-Roman periods, medieval and Renaissance sculptures, decorative arts (cutlery, faience, furniture, etc.), 16th to 20th century paintings, drawings and engravings, and early photographs. The museum also houses collections of Egyptology, ethnology and natural history.
These collections will introduce you to the rich archaeological and artistic heritage of Langres and the area. As you walk around the museum, you will see a number of major works, including Bronze Age swords, Celtic torques, a marble statue of a Roman emperor, a Bacchus mosaic and a rare glass bottle decorated with snakes.
Halfway through your visit, you will discover, embedded within the modern museum, the Romanesque chapel of Saint-Didier and the major collection of Renaissance works housed within its walls. The museum’s masterpiece, Christ among the Doctors, painted by José de Ribera, is on display in the nave. The museum’s fine art collection also boasts works by artists from the area, including Jean Tassel (17th c.), Claude Gillot (18th c.), Jules-Claude Ziegler and Joseph Girault de Prangey (19th c.), and Joseph-Paul Alizard and Jules-René Hervé (20th c.).
The collections of the museum also include works by other great figures of the history of art, notably Cornelis de Heem, Gerard Seghers, Jean Le Clerc, Charles Le Brun, Nicolas de Largillierre, Eugène Delacroix, Rosa Bonheur, Evariste Luminais and Raoul Dufy…
