Grand Curtius

About the museum

The Grand Curtius occupies a group of historic buildings on the banks of the Meuse. At its heart is the Curtius Palace, a building of red brick and Meuse stone erected at the end of the 16th and the beginning of the 17th century for Jean de Corte, known as Curtius, a wealthy dealer in arms and gunpowder. This palace in the Mosan Renaissance style is listed as exceptional heritage of Wallonia.

The collections have varied origins. The Liège Archaeological Institute, founded in 1850, gathered witnesses of the local past, and a first archaeology museum opened in the Curtius Palace in 1909. The Museum of Arms dates from 1885, the Museum of Glass from 1959, based on the Baar family collection deposited in 1946, and the Museum of Religious and Mosan Art from 1976.

After several years of renovation, these museums were merged in March 2009 under the name Grand Curtius. The complex of more than 5,000 m² links the Curtius Palace, the Curtius residence and the Brahy, Hayme de Bomal and de Wilde mansions, which illustrate Liège architecture from the 16th to the 18th century. The route covers more than 500,000 years of history, from archaeology to decorative arts, passing through arms, glass and religious and Mosan art.

Highlights

• Sedes Sapientiae, known as the Virgin of Evegnée, Romanesque sculpture from around 1060
• Triptych of the Holy Cross, a masterpiece of Mosan art
• Collection of firearms and bladed weapons numbering several thousand pieces
• Glass collection from the Baar family holdings
• Liège decorative arts, including furniture by Gustave Serrurier-Bovy
• Curtius Palace, a Mosan Renaissance building on the banks of the Meuse

Permanent exhibitions

• Art religieux et art mosan – Sculpture, goldsmith work and paintings from the Middle Ages to the 16th century, including the Virgin of Evegnée from around 1060, the Holy Cross triptych and the Lactation of Saint Bernard.
• Armes – Several thousand firearms and bladed weapons illustrate the history of Liège arms-making; around 600 civilian and military firearms are on display on the first floor of the Curtius Palace.
• Verre – A route devoted to the history of glass, built around the collection of Alfred and Armand Baar deposited at the Curtius in 1946.

Founded

2009

Operated by

Ville de Liège

Admission & discounts

Free admission: First Sunday of the month: free admission for everyone to the permanent collections.

Prices for the permanent collections. Admission is also free for schools of the Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles on self-guided visits, holders of the Carte PROF, the museumPASSmusées, and journalists with a valid press card. Tickets can be reserved and bought online.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits
• Sign language tours
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

Museum accessible to people with reduced mobility: lifts, ramps, accessible parking nearby, wheelchairs and seat canes available. The museum took part in the pilot phase of the Access-i label. For groups: a verbal-description presentation with tactile elements, routes adapted for people with intellectual disabilities, and visits with a sign language interpreter (on request in advance to the Museum Events Service). Tablets with sign language videos.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Kids’ birthday parties

Family visit on the 2nd Sunday of the month at 14:00 (1 hour 30 minutes, games and discovery, €10 per adult and €6 per child under 12). Free creative workshop Créamusée for ages 6 to 12 on the 1st Sunday of the month, 14:00–17:00, alternating with La Boverie and the Ansembourg museum. Birthday parties (“Mon incroyable anniversaire”) on Sundays for ages 6 to 12, maximum 15 children, reservation at +32 4 221 68 32.

Getting there & parking

Blue-bike bicycles are available nearby. The museum is in the historic heart of Liège, reached by following the Meuse quays on the left bank.

Amenities & dining

• Café
• Restaurant
• Museum shop

The museum Bistro (café-brasserie with terrace, meals 12:00–14:30, closed Mondays and Tuesdays) and the museum shop. Wi-Fi is only mentioned for the rented auditorium.

Events & venue rental

• Spaces for rent
• Corporate events

Up to 200 guests.

Glass gallery available for private hire (receptions, banquets, cocktails, up to 200 people) and a 100-seat auditorium with equipment (microphone, projector, screen, piano, Wi-Fi). Museum Bistro for corporate meals.

Plan your visit