Opened in 2006, the Musée du Quai Branly (Museum Quai Branly, in English) is one of the most important new museums in Paris, dedicated to the arts and artifacts of Africa, Asia, Oceania and America. It is also one of the 3 excellent museums in Paris dedicated to Asian art. Known as the pet project of former French President Jacques Chirac (just as the Pompidou Center was the eponymous president), the museum regularly hosts themed exhibits that offer an in-depth look at the civilizations and artistic heritage of indigenous cultures in these regions. .
Housed in a vast and striking contemporary building designed by Jean Nouvel. In addition to its immense exhibition spaces, the museum, located near the Eiffel Tower and perched near the River Seine, has a huge garden with almost 170 trees and green walls covered with 150 species of plants. There is also a cafeteria and a full-service restaurant with terrace seating, offering good views of the Seine and the famous tower.
Location and contact information:
The Quai Branly Museum is located in the 7th district of Paris, near the Eiffel Tower and not far from the Musée d’Orsay.
To access the museum:
Address: 37, Quai Branly
Metro / RER: M Alma-Marceau, Iena, Ecole Militaire or Bir Hakeim; RER C – Pont de l’Alma or Tour Eiffel stations
Tel: +33 (0) 1 56 61 70 00
Visit the official website
Opening hours and tickets:
The museum is open on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Sundays from 11 am to 7 pm (the box office closes at 6 pm); Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 11 am to 9 pm (the box office closes at 8 pm). The museum is closed on Mondays.
Also closed: May 1 and December 25.
Tickets: See current ticket prices here. The admission fee does not apply to European visitors under the age of 25 with a valid photo ID (does not include temporary exhibitions). Admission is free for all visitors on the first Sunday of the month.
Sights and attractions nearby Quai Branly:
- Eiffel Tower
- Orsay’s Museum
- Musee rodin
- Musée de l’Armée (Army Museum)
- Passy neighborhood: village charms right in the city
Design of permanent collections: highlights
The Quai Branly Museum is presented in several thematic collections (see a complete map and guide to the collections on the official website here).
The permanent collection of the Musee du Quai Branly has detailed departments dedicated to the artistic and cultural artifacts of indigenous cultures around the world, so during a first visit, you may want to focus on just two, three, or four of these. to appreciate the collections to the fullest and come out with a deeper understanding. The artifacts are rotated regularly to provide better circulation and help protect fragile objects (textiles, paper, or artifacts made from other natural materials), which are vulnerable to exposure to light.
The design of the permanent collection is innovative in the way it presents the main geographic regions (Oceania, Asia, Africa and the Americas) in a fluid and slightly overlapping manner. Visitors are encouraged to observe the main crossroads between different cultures: Asia-Oceania, Insulindia, and Mashreck-Maghreb. At the same time, each section offers a remarkable concentration of objects that bring to life the cultures and traditions in question.
The Americas
A section dedicated to the indigenous cultures of the Americas has recently been revamped, exploring the arts and cultural practices of Native American civilizations in North and South America. Alaska and Greenland masks and ivory objects from the Inuit tribes are highlights, as are California Native American leather goods, belts, and headdresses. In the Central and South American wings, traditional Mexican art objects are on display, along with costumes and masks from indigenous Bolivian cultures and artifacts from many more cultures.
Oceania
The artifacts in this section are organized by geographic origin, but they also highlight common themes among the cultures of the Pacific regions. Remarkable objects of art and everyday life from Polynesia, Australia, Melanesia and Insulinidia await in this wing of the museum.
Africa
The museum’s rich African collections are broadly divided into sections dedicated to North African, Sub-Saharan, Central African, and coastal African cultures. Highlights include notable furniture, jewelry, textiles, and pottery from the Berber cultures of North Africa; magnificent rural frescoes from the Gondar region, Ethiopia, and exceptional masks and sculptures from Cameroon.
Asia
The huge collection of Asian art and artifacts reflects the tremendous diversity of the Asian continent, and curators have emphasized the rich cross-cultural influences that have developed over millennia. Highlights include Japanese stencil decoration, Indian and Central Asian art, and cultural practices, and specialized sections devoted to Siberian shamanic traditions, Buddhist practices across the continent, Middle Eastern weapons and armor, and artifacts derived from ethnic minorities in China, including the Miao and Dong.
