Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
WORTH A DETOUR
MUSÉE D'ART ET D'HISTOIRE
To the southwest of the Basilica de St-Denis is the
Museum of Art and History
(
www.musee-saint-denis.fr
;
22bis rue Gabriel Péri, St-Denis; adult/student & senior €5/3; 10am-5.30pm
Mon, Wed & Fri, to 8pm Thu, 2-6.30pm Sat & Sun; St-Denis-Porte de Paris)
, housed in a restored
Carmelite convent founded in 1625 and later presided over by Louise de France, the
youngest daughter of Louis XV. Displays include reconstructions of the Carmelites'
cells, an 18th-century apothecary and, in the archaeology section, items found during
excavations around the basilica.
There's a section on modern art, with a collection of work by a local son, the surreal-
ist artist Paul Éluard (1895-1952), as well as an important collection of politically
charged posters, cartoons, lithographs and paintings from the 1871 Paris Commune.
