Founded in 1794 by the Abbé Grégoire together with the Conservatoire national des arts et métiers, the Musée des Arts et Métiers is devoted to the history of technology and inventions. It holds some 80,000 objects, more than 2,500 of them on display, divided into seven fields: scientific instruments, materials, construction, communication, energy, mechanics and transport. Highlights include Cugnot's steam carriage (1770), Lavoisier's laboratory, the Lumière brothers' cinematograph and a set of automata. The last part of the tour fills the former church of the priory of Saint-Martin-des-Champs, home to cars, aircraft and Foucault's pendulum. The museum stands on rue Réaumur, in the northern Marais (3rd arrondissement).
Highlights
Foucault's pendulum
In 1851, at the Panthéon, the physicist Léon Foucault used a pendulum to make the Earth's rotation visible. The museum keeps the original 1851 bob and swings a pendulum in the choir of the church of Saint-Martin-des-Champs. Twenty-minute demonstrations take place Tuesday to Sunday at noon and 5pm (except public holidays), with no booking needed and included in the ticket.
The church of Saint-Martin-des-Champs
The former priory church, whose choir dates back to the 12th century, houses the transport collection. Aircraft hang beneath the vaults, including the Blériot XI that crossed the Channel in 1909, above early motor cars. A metal structure set up in the nave lets you look at some of the machines from above.
Clément Ader's Avion III
Hanging above the grand staircase, this bat-winged flying machine was built by Clément Ader between 1893 and 1897. The engineer gave it to the Conservatoire in 1902.
Infos pratiques
Tips
A ticket for the permanent collections costs €12 (reduced €9); entry is free for under-18s, for 18-25-year-old residents of the European Union, and for everyone on the first Sunday of the month (permanent collections). From 22 September 2026 to 1 August 2027, the immersive experience "Lady Liberté" tells the story of how the Statue of Liberty was built: €21 (reduced €18) with the collections, or €9 on its own, plus a €1 online booking fee. Prices as checked in September 2026. In front of the museum, Zeus, the mechanical horse from the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, comes to life every 20 minutes until 10 January 2027.
How to get there
60 rue Réaumur, 75003 Paris. Metro Arts et Métiers (lines: 3 and 11), Réaumur-Sébastopol (line: 4) Bus 20 and 38 (rue Réaumur), 39 (boulevard de Sébastopol). Vélib' station Turbigo-Réaumur
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