DUHAMEL PAVILION
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A historic pavilion in Mantes, a stunning Louis XVI-style building, hosts the Maison de la Mémoire and exhibitions.
This astonishing Louis XVI-style building is an original figure in the Mantois landscape. It was erected in 1906 by Maurice Nalet, at the request of Victor Duhamel and his wife, to house the art collections they had built up during their travels in Europe, Asia and Africa, and donated to the town. On the outside, the Pavillon's walls feature ashlar stonework. The sculpted decorations to the right of the square entrance include the building's architect and the Duhamel couple themselves. The door is topped by a tympanum depicting La Renommée couronnant les arts. The rear features a lion sculpture. The building's interior features a vast space lit by a zenithal glass roof. The entire structure is supported by slender cast-iron columns, using an innovative nineteenth-century process - the same one used by architect Labrouste for the Bibliothèque nationale's Salle des imprimés. Today, the Duhamel couple's collections (vases, dishes, dolls, jewelry, etc.) are the subject of temporary exhibitions at the Hôtel-Dieu museum. Having been a museum, a library and then a music school, this building, which has been awarded the "Heritage of Regional Interest" label, is now home to the Maison de la Mémoire and its 400 books on the History of France, as well as themed meetings and temporary exhibitions - so be sure to check the cultural calendar with the Heritage Department before you visit.
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