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Musée Biochet-Bréchot

Local history museum of Caudebec-en-Caux, on the second floor of the Maison des Templiers, a 13th-century medieval house; currently closed for renovation.

Temporarily closed

Directions

Musée Biochet-BréchotTemporarily closed

Temporarily closed. The museum’s second floor is closed for renovation; the town and the association are preparing to reopen a local history route. Only the first floor is open, with the shop of a collective of craftspeople (May to October: Friday 14:00–18:00, Saturday 10:00–18:00, Sunday 11:00–18:00).

About the museum

The Musée Biochet-Bréchot is a museum of local history and archaeology in Caudebec-en-Caux, now part of the commune of Rives-en-Seine. It was founded in the 19th century by Georges Biochet and received the “Musée de France” label in 2004. Its collections include fireplace plates from the 16th to the 19th century, archaeological objects, ancient manuscripts, Pays de Caux furniture, lithographs of Caudebec and a large part of the work of painter and sculptor Émile Bréchot.

The museum occupies the second floor of the Maison des Templiers (House of the Templars), the oldest house in the town, dating from the 13th century. Its origin remains unclear: it may have belonged to Templars, served as a hall for the monks of Saint-Wandrille, or been a customs house. Threatened with being sold abroad in 1911, it was saved by the Association des Amis du Vieux Caudebec, founded in 1912, which bought it in 1918 and restored it. After the fire that devastated the town in 1940, only the walls remained; the association restored the house again and rebuilt the collections.

The town of Rives-en-Seine became the owner of the building in September 2018. The ground floor is occupied by a collective of craftspeople, while the museum’s second floor is being refurbished with the association so that a local history route can reopen there.