A spellbinding visit
The main quality of the Musée Cévenol is that it is entirely authentic.
Close to Le Vigan’s Romanesque bridge, surrounded by a well preserved medieval settlement built on the banks of the river Arre, the museum building was at first a tannery, then during the18th century a silk mill, later becoming a glove factory. On the inside, in large austere room with windows built into the arches, the history of the Cévennes région unfolds, a history which is told simply by a collection of everyday objects or old works of art. Thousands of pieces are thus brought together, either grouped forming a given ethnological theme, or simply exhibited to arouse one’s curiosity. The museum’s terrace above the river, its garden, its massive but not monumental architecture and surrounding houses give the whole setting a surprisingly rich character. No drastic renovations have been made to this municipal museum during the course of its fifty year life, thus protecting the memories of culture, revealed here to the visitor.