The Musée Nissim de Camondo is a
historic house museum
A historic house museum is a house of historic significance that has been transformed into a museum. Historic furnishings may be displayed in a way that reflects their original placement and usage in a home. Historic house museums are held to a ...
of French
decorative arts
]
The decorative arts are arts or crafts whose object is the design and manufacture of objects that are both beautiful and functional. It includes most of the arts making objects for the interiors of buildings, and interior design, but not usual ...
located in the Hôtel Camondo at 63, rue de Monceau, on the edge of
Parc Monceau, in the
8th arrondissement of Paris, France. The nearest
Paris Métro
The Paris Métro (french: Métro de Paris ; short for Métropolitain ) is a rapid transit system in the Paris metropolitan area, France. A symbol of the city, it is known for its density within the capital's territorial limits, uniform architec ...
stops are
Villiers and
Monceau on
Line 2.
The Paris Convention and Visitors Bureau describes the museum as housing "a spectacular collection of French decorative art from the second half of the 18th century. Admire Aubusson tapestries, canvases by Élisabeth Vigée-Lebrun or items that once belonged to Marie-Antoinette. Also on display, a collection of Sèvres porcelain and furniture by cabinetmakers Riesener and Oeben".
History
The mansion was built in 1911 by Count
Moïse de Camondo
Count Moïse de Camondo (15 March 1860 – 14 November 1935) was an Ottoman Empire-born French banker and art collector.
He was a member of the prominent Camondo family.
Biography
As a child, Camondo moved with his family from their home in Cons ...
, a banker, with architect
René Sergent, to set off his collection of eighteenth-century French furniture and art objects. Its design was patterned on the
Petit Trianon
The Petit Trianon (; French for "small Trianon") is a Neoclassical style château located on the grounds of the Palace of Versailles in Versailles, France. It was built between 1762 and 1768 during the reign of King Louis XV of France. ...
at
Versailles
The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, ...
, though with modern conveniences. On his death in 1935, it was announced that both the house and its collections were bequeathed to
Les Arts Décoratifs in honour of his son,
Nissim de Camondo
Nissim de Camondo (23 August 1892 – 5 September 1917) was a French military officer and a member of the prominent Camondo family.
Born in Boulogne-Billancourt and named for his grandfather, he was the son of Moïse de Camondo, a wealthy Jewi ...
, killed in
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
.
The house opened as a museum in 1936.
More tragedy followed a few years later when Moïse's daughter and her family were deported to the
Auschwitz concentration camp.
A plaque in the house states that in 1944, Béatrice de Camondo, her husband Léon Reinach, and their two children, Fanny and Bertrand all died in the concentration camp. The Camondo family was a Sephardic Jewish clan. Moïse's widow Irène survived by escaping to a villa in the south of France.
Today, the house is maintained as if it were still a private home preserved in its original condition.
Three floors are open to visitors: the lower ground floor (kitchens), upper ground floor (formal rooms), first floor (private apartments), and gardens. Outbuildings are also included, built in 1863 and enlarged by Comte Nissim de Camondo; they were later modified by Moïse.
The house's furnishings include needlepoint chairs and work by artisans of the ''
Garde-Meuble de la Couronne'' (Royal Furniture Repository) such as
Jean-François Oeben,
Jean Henri Riesener, and
Georges Jacob. Floors are furnished with
Savonnerie
The Savonnerie manufactory was the most prestigious European manufactory of knotted-pile carpets, enjoying its greatest period c. 1650–1685; the cachet of its name is casually applied to many knotted-pile carpets made at other centers. The manuf ...
carpets woven in 1678 for the ''Grande Galerie'' in the
Louvre
The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...
.
The walls are accented with tapestries (many
Beauvais or
Aubusson) and paintings, including portraits by
Élisabeth-Louise Vigée Le Brun, landscapes by
Guardi
Francesco Lazzaro Guardi (; 5 October 1712 – 1 January 1793) was an Italian painter, nobleman, and a member of the Venetian School. He is considered to be among the last practitioners, along with his brothers, of the classic Venetian school of ...
and
Hubert Robert
Hubert Robert (22 May 1733 – 15 April 1808) was a French painter in the school of Romanticism, noted especially for his landscape paintings and capricci, or semi-fictitious picturesque depictions of ruins in Italy and of France.Jean de Cayeux. ...
, and hunting scenes by
Jean-Baptiste Oudry
Jean-Baptiste Oudry (; 17 March 1686 – 30 April 1755) was a French Rococo painter, engraver, and tapestry designer. He is particularly well known for his naturalistic pictures of animals and his hunt pieces depicting game. His son, Jacques-Ch ...
. Table settings are of particular interest, especially the Orloff silver dinner service commissioned by
Catherine II of Russia from silversmith
Jacques-Nicolas Roettiers
Jacques-Nicolas Roettiers (1736–1788) was a Flemish goldsmith and silversmith active in Paris and, in concert with his father, said to be the most fashionable Parisian silversmith of his day.
Roettiers was the son of distinguished silversmith J ...
in 1770, and the Buffon porcelain services made at
Sèvres
Sèvres (, ) is a commune in the southwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris, in the Hauts-de-Seine department, Île-de-France region. The commune, which had a population of 23,251 as of 2018, is known for ...
in the 1780s with a bird theme. Other notable objects include a bust by
Jean-Antoine Houdon
Jean-Antoine Houdon (; 20 March 1741 – 15 July 1828) was a French neoclassical sculptor.
Houdon is famous for his portrait busts and statues of philosophers, inventors and political figures of the Enlightenment. Houdon's subjects included De ...
, bas-reliefs, Chinese vases, and crystal chandeliers.
As of February 2020, the museum remained closed due to the worldwide
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
.
[MUSÉE NISSIM DE CAMONDO](_blank)
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As of May 2022, the museum is open, after having been closed in February 2020 due to the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
.
In the popular media
The house was the location for filming some scenes for Lupin (TV series) standing in for the home of the fictional, wealthy Pellegrini family. Locations included in the television series include the "grounds outside the house, inside the house, and also on the roof".
Gallery
Image:Musée Nissim de Camondo - Grand Bureau.JPG, Grand Bureau
Image:Musée Nissim de Camondo - Library.JPG, Library
Image:Musée Nissim de Camondo - Dining Room.JPG, Dining Room
Image:Musée Nissim de Camondo - silver 2.JPG, Silver service
Image:Les gentilhommes du duc d’Orléans.jpg, Les Gentilshommes du Duc d'Orléans
See also
* List of museums in Paris
There are around 130 museums in Paris, France, within city limits. This list also includes suburban museums within the "Grand Paris" area, such as the Air and Space Museum.
The sixteen museums of the City of Paris are annotated with "VP", as well ...
References
* ''The Nissim de Camondo Museum'', by Sylvie Legrand-Rossi, Paris:Les Arts Décoratifs, 2009.
* ''The Camondo Legacy. The passions of a Paris Collector'', directed by Marie-Noël de Gary, photographs by Jean-Marie del Moral, London:Thames & Hudson, 2008.
* ''The Nissim de Camondo Museum'', by Nadine Gasc, Gérard Mabille, Paris: Musées et Monuments de France : Albin Michel, 1997.
* ''Musée Nissim de Camondo: catalogue des collections'', by Jean Messelet, Bertrand Rondot, Xavier Salmon, Béatrice Quette, Paris : Réunion des musées nationaux: Union centrale des arts décoratifs, 1998. .
External links
Musée Nissim de Camondo
(detailed)
Musée Nissim de Camondo
(overview)
{{authority control
Buildings and structures completed in 1911
Art museums established in 1935
Art museums and galleries in Paris
Camondo, Nissim de
Decorative arts museums in France
Historic house museums in Paris
Buildings and structures in the 8th arrondissement of Paris
1935 establishments in France
Les Arts Décoratifs
Nissim de Camondo
Nissim de Camondo (23 August 1892 – 5 September 1917) was a French military officer and a member of the prominent Camondo family.
Born in Boulogne-Billancourt and named for his grandfather, he was the son of Moïse de Camondo, a wealthy Jewi ...
House of Camondo