25. Musée national du Moyen Age - Thermes et hotel de Cluny

The Musée national du Moyen Age - Thermes et hotel de Cluny (the National Museum of the Middle Ages incorporating the Gallo-Roman Baths and the residence of the Abbots of Cluny) is on the Left Bank of the Seine adjacent to the Sorbonne.

The original building was begun in 1334 by the Abbot of Cluny.  It was rebuilt in 1510 by succeeding abbots.  In 1843 it was made into a public museum to preserve its Gothic elements and its Renaissance collections.

Mary Tudor, sister of Henry VIII of England lived here for some time after the death of her husband Louis XII of France.  Apparently Louis' successor, Francis wanted to keep an eye on her in case she was pregnant.  I'd hate to think about what may have happened to her if she had been.

A village well from the middle ages, complete with gargoyle.

The first room in the museum is for temporary exhibitions and the current exhibition was stunning.  It was called Larmes d'Albatre (Tears of Alabaster) - Les Pleurants du Tombeau de Jean Sans Peur, Duc de Bourgogne (The Mourners of the Tomb of John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy).

Let's begin with the genealogy of the Dukes of Burgundy of the House of Valois - because I just love the names.

Philip the Bold

Died 1404

John the Fearless

Died 1419

Philip the Good

Died 1467

Charles the Timid

Died 1477

I'm guessing they got their name after they died seeing that Philip the Good lasted the longest and the House of Valois lost the dukedom under Charles the Timid.

But back to the story.  John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy from 1404 until 1419, was a fervent admirer of the tomb built by his father, Philip the Bold just outside the city of Dijon.  It was the work of sculptors Jean de Marville and Claus Sluter but was not a new concept, it followed a popular design from the 13th century.  It is where the lower section of the tomb, on which lies the recumbent effigy of the prince, is made up of a series of mourning figures sculpted in low relief. These are named the "mourners".

In 1435, Philip the Good commissioned a replica of the tomb of Philip the Bold, for his late father John the Fearless.  The sculptors were a Spaniard, Jean de la Huerta  and Antoine Le Moiturier who carved for 25 years to produce 40 separate mourners, each with an individual expression, a variety of stances, and fine drapery.

Here is the tomb of John the Fearless.  The group of mourners appear to be moving in and out of the cloisters.

The group comprises a water sprinkler, two altar boys, one cross-bearer acolyte, a deacon and a bishop preceding three cantors and two Cartusians.  Following is the Household of the Duke.  The forty alabaster mourners are on loan from the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Dijon and are presented without the lower sections of the tomb.

Masterpieces of 15th century sculpture.

L'hotel de Cluny is partially constructed on the remains of the Gallo-Roman baths dating from the 3rd century.  Following painstaking restoration work, a short corridor was opened up between l'hotel de Cluny and the baths to allow seamless movement between the two buildings.

This huge space which was the baths, houses exhibitions in red cases.  

Nothing is left of the baths except the external walls.  No decoration remains intact although they have pieces of columns and fragments of tiling found in the rubble during restoration dating back to 37 AD.

This is the oldest artefact in France.  The Pillar of the Boatmen dedicated to Jupiter and Tiberius from 37AD.

Moving back into l'hotel de Cluny there was room after room of artefacts, ivories, ancient manuscripts and tapestries.   But the Middle Ages and all its religious iconography does my head in.  I'd had enough.  Apart from this bronze hunting bird in front of fabulous tapestries.

The ceiling of the abbot's chapel (statues of the abbot's family went in those six niches).

A great fireplace in the cooking/eating hall of the abbot's private chambers.

And a table centrepiece of the day - not a good look, JC!

Dear me ..... I need a break.  

Outside into the fresh air.

And a walk passed the beautiful Sorbonne.

And on to the little Hotel Cluny-Sorbonne, our home for 5 days in 1998 - our honeymoon.  Other than the wonky sun-shade it looked pretty good inside.  The elevator is so small that it would take only our two suitcases - we had to walk up the stairs!