Musée des arts décoratifs

Museum of 16th- to 18th-century art objects and furniture, housed in the Hôtel Lallemant, an early Renaissance town mansion in Bourges.

Temporarily closed

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Musée des arts décoratifsTemporarily closed

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Temporarily closed. Closed to the public for works since 2022, as part of the renovation of the Town of Bourges museums; the city’s official museum portal does not list it among the open museums. No confirmed reopening date in the sources consulted.

About the museum

The Musée des arts décoratifs in Bourges occupies the Hôtel Lallemant, a town mansion whose construction probably began in 1497 and was completed in the first years of the 16th century. Its façades carry a refined decoration in the antique style, suggesting that Italian ornamentalists worked on it. The building is an early example of the French early Renaissance, older than the Loire châteaux. It is built on the Gallo-Roman town rampart, which explains the sloping passage linking the upper courtyard, where the main entrance once was, to the lower courtyard, which is today the visitors’ entrance. The Town of Bourges has owned it since 1826.

The collections present art objects and furniture of the 17th and 18th centuries, including a large ebony cabinet engraved, carved and inlaid around 1650. They also include French, Dutch and Italian paintings, Flemish tapestries with a series of the Months, faience from Nevers and Delft, and objects from the 16th to the 18th centuries: Limoges enamels, weapons, ivories, glassware, watches and clocks.

The Hôtel Lallemant has been closed for works since spring 2022, as part of the overall renovation of the Town of Bourges museums.