Musée de Cluny – National Museum of the Middle Ages

Updated on September 30, 2026

In the heart of the Latin Quarter, in the 5th arrondissement, the Musée de Cluny presents medieval art in two connected monuments: the Gallo-Roman baths of Lutetia and the townhouse of the abbots of Cluny, built at the end of the 15th century. Its collections span some 1,500 years of history, from late Antiquity to the early 16th century: sculpture, goldsmiths' work, enamels, stained glass, ivories and tapestries. The most famous piece is the Lady and the Unicorn tapestry series. Reopened in May 2022 after several years of work, the museum offers a chronological route that is accessible to visitors with reduced mobility.

Highlights

The Lady and the Unicorn

This set of six tapestries was woven around 1500. Five of them are generally read as an evocation of the five senses: touch, taste, smell, hearing and sight. The sixth, which bears the inscription "À mon seul désir" ("To my only desire"), remains the most enigmatic. Take time to look at the many animals and plants scattered across the red background.

The Gallo-Roman baths

These baths date from the time when Paris was called Lutetia and are among the best-preserved ancient remains in the city. The frigidarium, the cold-bath hall, still has its original vault, about 14 metres high. It houses the Pillar of the Boatmen, a monument dedicated to Jupiter by the boatmen of Lutetia in the 1st century.

The heads of the Kings of Judah

In 1793, revolutionaries pulled down and beheaded the statues of the Gallery of Kings on Notre-Dame, mistaking them for kings of France. In 1977, 21 of these heads were found during building work in a mansion in the 9th arrondissement. They are now displayed in the museum alongside other sculptures from the cathedral.

Infos pratiques

Tips

A full-price ticket costs €12 and a reduced ticket €10 (prices checked in September 2026); the price may be higher during temporary exhibitions. Entry is free for under-18s, for European Union residents aged 18 to 25, and for everyone on the first Sunday of the month. The museum is closed on Mondays and on 1 January, 1 May and 25 December. From 13 October 2026 to 24 January 2027, the exhibition "Nicolas Flamel, alchimiste de papier" looks at this medieval Parisian burgher who became a legendary figure of alchemy.

How to get there

Entrance: 28 rue Du Sommerard, 75005 Paris Metro Cluny–La Sorbonne (line 10), Saint-Michel (line 4), Odéon (lines 4 and 10) RER Saint-Michel–Notre-Dame (lines B and C) Bus 21, 27, 38, 63, 85, 86, 87