The Close Ties Between Notre Dame and the Cluny Museum
The Cluny Museum, home to the famous “Lady and the Unicorn” tapestry series, is a close neighbor to the Notre Dame Cathedral, situated only a short 10-minute walk away. The ties between the two heritage sites from the medieval period are deep, as the Cluny Museum, which holds one of the largest collections of medieval art, has conserved and showcased iconic Notre Dame elements for well over a century.
“The Musée de Cluny has been the historical keeper of medieval statuary from Notre Dame Cathedral since the 19th century… particularly following the restoration of the Cathedral by the architect Viollet-le-Duc,” explains Aurianne Ortiz, Philanthropy Manager at the Cluny Museum. One emblematic piece includes the 13th century rare nude statue of Adam, once located in the inner side of the south façade of the transept. “After the closure of the Musée des Monuments Français, the famous statue of Adam was finally entrusted to the Cluny Museum in 1887.”
A century later, Cluny became host to one of the most incredible archeological discoveries of the 20th century. “[We are speaking], of course, about the unexpected and great discovery in 1977 of the famous heads of the Kings of Judah, which had been beheaded during the French Revolution on instruction of the Revolutionaries,” recounts Ortiz. The heads once adorned the west façade of Notre Dame above the main portals, but had been missing since 1793. When they were unexpectedly discovered under the courtyard of a private town house in the 9th arrondissement, they were entrusted to the museum.
In the 1980s, Cluny Museum created a dedicated room to display sculptural elements from the Notre Dame Cathedral. The room was rethought in 2022 in the midst of the restoration of Notre Dame with the addition of a large, interactive touch-screen table, which allows visitors to view the works and fragments on display in the room as they originally appeared on the Cathedral. “It also provides the public with a wide range of historical and aesthetic information on the works for themselves.”
Today, the Cluny Museum remains integral to supporting Notre Dame. “It plays a key role in the conservation and study of Notre Dame’s heritage, particularly its sculptural decor,” Ortiz shares.
Exhibitions this Fall: Rediscovering Notre Dame’s Sculptural Legacy at Cluny
Marking the long-awaited reopening of Notre Dame Cathedral this December, the Cluny Museum is presenting two exceptional exhibitions, each spotlighting Notre Dame’s medieval artistry and intellectual heritage.
The first exhibition, Making Stones Speak: Notre Dame de Paris Medieval Sculpture, is a collaboration with the French National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research (INRAP). It is curated by Damien Berné, Head Curator at the Cluny Museum and responsible for sculptures. It offers a deep dive into Notre Dame’s original sculptural décor, dating from the 12th to the 13th century, re-examining the pieces the museum has had in its collections.
“These elements had not been studied or restored for almost 40 years,” explains Ortiz. The exhibition will present the ambitious project of two years of intense research undertaken as part of the “tremendous scientific activity” invested into the cathedral’s restoration work. “It will enable knowledge about this collection and this famous building to be updated and increased.”
This exhibition will be composed of around 120 pieces, arranged within the museum’s historic Frigidarium and Notre Dame room, recreating among other things the main portals of the cathedral to allow visitors to experience the grandeur of the original décor.
An exciting new discovery on display will undoubtedly wow visitors. “For the first time, the museum will also display 30 remarkable fragments of Notre Dame’s 12th- and 13th-century rood screen, discovered during recent INRAP excavations,” details Ortiz. “This will enable everyone to discover these unknown elements and admire their iconography as well as their original polychromy [multi-colored paint] which has been extremely well conserved.”
The second exhibition, Turning the Pages of Notre Dame: Masterpieces of the Medieval Library, curated with the Bibliothèque Nationale de France, brings to life Notre Dame’s influence as a center of knowledge. “[This exhibition] will provide a panorama of the wealth and vitality of the cathedral’s intellectual and artistic life during the Middle Ages. It will also highlight the key role played by the cathedral chapter in managing books and the library, a role highlighted thanks to the recent research of the Bibliotheque Nationale de France manuscript department on the Cathedral’s manuscripts.”
Featuring around 40 pieces, from medieval manuscripts to chapter registers, the exhibit will offer a rare view into the library’s historical archives, some of which are held in France’s national archives and Paris’ Archbishop historical archive
Together, these exhibitions invite audiences into the medieval mind, revealing the cathedral’s immense impact on art, literature, and intellectualism. These exhibitions are open to visitors from November 19th until March 16th, 2025.
Cluny Comes to the US
The museum’s collections are internationally renowned, and are sought out by institutions around the world. “The Musée de Cluny is the only French national museum dedicated to the Middle Ages, and it enjoys an international reputation both for the quality of its collections, which are constantly being added to, and for the major scientific work carried out there,” notes Ortiz.
The Cluny museum seeks to share this heritage so that audiences around the world may experience them as well. “Each year, the museum contributes to organizing exhibitions in France or abroad by lending numerous works, always with the same ambition of sharing knowledge of the Medieval World with as many people as possible,” she explains.
For American audiences, the Cluny Museum is lending pieces to major U.S. museums this season. At the Getty Museum in Los Angeles, the museum’s prized Stavelot Altarpiece, a masterwork of 12th-century Mosan art, will be on display in the exhibition Lumen: The Art and Science of Light through December 8th. Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York will showcase exquisite examples of medieval gold and silverware as part of its exhibition Siena: The Rise of Painting, on view from October through January.
In these collaborative exhibitions, the Cluny Museum shares its dedication to preserving, studying, and celebrating medieval artistry, bringing Notre Dame’s enduring influence to audiences worldwide.
Support Cluny: Gardens, Treasures, and Preservation
Preserving history and heritage for future generations is at the heart of the Cluny Museum’s mission, and with new restoration projects underway, there are more opportunities than ever to support this vision.
Beginning in late 2024, the museum will embark on the first phase of its garden restoration project, which includes the redevelopment of its public garden, scheduled for completion by late spring 2025. The garden offers a unique outdoor experience inspired by medieval horticulture and design. Nestled in the heart of Paris, this lush space recreates elements of medieval gardens, serving as a serene complement to the museum’s medieval collections and is a favorite spot for both Parisians and tourists.
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The restoration of the historic Abbot’s Garden will follow in 2025-2026, creating renewed spaces that highlight the museum’s medieval surroundings.
The museum is also working to add a beautiful medieval piece of art of deep cultural and historic importance to France to its collections. “The museum is mobilizing to acquire a very rare statuette representing Mary Magdalene, dating from the late 15th century from Alsace,” shares Ortiz. The statuette has been classified as a National Treasure and is “without equal in French public collections.” The statuette’s addition would shed light on a rich but less-represented period of French artistic craftsmanship, breathing new life into the understanding of French medieval life.
Realizing these essential projects calls for significant resources and dedicated supporters. “We are looking for patrons to support us in our mission to preserve and enhance our heritage and enrich our collections,” explains Ortiz. “Thanks to Friends of Fondation de France, US Donors who value the work of Musée de Cluny can support us.”
Through Friends of Fondation de France, US-based donors can make tax-deductible donations to sustain the museum’s mission of keeping medieval heritage alive. Help us in supporting the Cluny Museum, which continues to play an invaluable part of the Notre Dame Cathedral restoration process, and be part of the legacy which ensure its timeless treasures benefit future generations.
