Musée des Beaux-Arts et d'archéologie de Besançon
The Musée des Beaux-Arts et d' archéologie in Besançon is the oldest public museum in France. With a founding date of 1694, it is almost a hundred years older than the Louvre as a museum.
The museum is housed since 1843 in a former granary in the city center. After recording the collection Besson a reconstruction was under the direction of Le Corbusier disciple Louis Miquel 1967-1970 made , the courtyard was roofed.
Collections
The museum's collections are divided into the areas of archeology, drawings and paintings:
Archeology
- The Egyptian collection contains mummies of the royal scribe Seramon (end of Dynasty 21 ) and the Ankhpakhered from the 26th Dynasty, as well as smaller objects such as statuettes.
- The Department of Prehistory shows objects of the Neolithic, Bronze Age and Iron Age.
- The Gallo - Roman culture is the subject of the most important archaeological department. It contains the mosaics of Neptune and Medusa from the collège Lumiere, other objects from excavations in the urban area and a bronze statue of a bull with three horns from Avrigney - Virey.
- The medieval collection displays statues, sarcophagi and other items.
Drawings
- Has the Musée des beaux -arts et d' archéologie de Besançon one of the biggest graphic collections in France with over 5000 works from the late 15th century to the mid 20th century. Among the artists represented are, Federico Barocci, Tintoretto, Annibale Carracci, Giovanni Battista Tiepolo as examples of Italian art to name the 15th to the 18th century.
- Albrecht Dürer, Peter Paul Rubens, Jacob Jordaens, Rembrandt
- Poussin, Le Sueur, Simon Vouet, François Boucher, Jean- Honoré Fragonard, Hubert Robert, Watteau, Jacques -Louis David, Géricault, Eugène Delacroix, Gustave Courbet, Raoul Dufy, Albert Marquet, Henri Matisse, Auguste Rodin
Painting
The collection shows examples of European art since the 14th century:
- Italy: Giovanni Bellini, Jacopo Tintoretto, Titian, Palumbo, Giuseppe Recco, Luca Giordano, Tiepolo and particularly Agnolo Bronzino with its Lamentation of the Dead Christ.
- Nordic schools: Lucas Cranach the Elder, Jan Brueghel the Elder, Peter Paul Rubens, Jacob Jordaens, Jan Lievens, Ruysdael, Cuyp Aelbert, Willem Claesz Heda, Jan van Goyen ...
- Spain: Zurbarán, Juan de Arellano, Francisco Goya and his scenes of cannibalism.
- France: Simon Vouet, Philippe de Champaigne, Le Sueur, Hubert Robert, Jean- Honoré Fragonard, François Boucher, Nonotte, Jacques -Louis David, Jean -Auguste -Dominique Ingres, Géricault, Paul Delaroche. Prominent Gustave Courbet with his monumental painting L' Hallali du cerf, and Paul Signac, Bonnard, Vallotton, Auguste Renoir, Henri Matisse, Suzanne Valadon, Albert Marquet and others.
The Drunkenness of Noah, Giovanni Bellini
Scene of cannibalism, Francisco de Goya.
Nymph at the source, Lucas Cranach the Elder.
Origin of the collection
In essence, the museum exhibits works from four donations. 1694 gave Jean -Baptiste Boisot his collection of manuscripts, printed books, medals, eleven paintings and four busts in the possession of Granvelle family, the Benedictines of the city on the condition that they make twice a week to the public. 1819 offered Pierre -Adrien Pâris, the architect of the king, his collection of 38 paintings and 183 drawings including that of Jean- Honoré Fragonard at the museum. Jean -François Gigoux († 1894) bequeathed his collection of more than 3,000 graphics and 460 paintings to the museum. The preliminary final donation came in 1969 by George Besson and his wife (112 paintings, 220 illustrations of Modern and Contemporary Art).