CANTONAL MUSEUM OF ARCHAEOLOGY AND HISTORY
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Hunter-gatherers, Bronze Age, Iron Age, Roman history... 15,000 years of Vaud history, from the end of the Paleolithic to the present day, are evoked through archaeological discoveries. Among the many objects on display are those from lake dwellings on Lake Geneva, the first place of human settlement. The story begins after the Iron Age, with the first written records. The Celts occupied the Northern Alps, and the first towns were built.
A second permanent exhibition deals with numismatics. The "Coins and Medals" collections retrace the history of trade since the dawn of time. Coins first appeared in their present form in 600 BC in Asia Minor, in what is now Turkey. The history of trade can be traced back to before the appearance of money. Subsequently, metal (gold, silver, iron) was chosen for its resistance, reliable transport and easy storage. Gold and silver coinage spread far beyond national borders and came into widespread use when a monarch had the ingenious idea of "minting" money in his own name, i.e. engraving the seal of the authorities who had made it, thus confirming its weight and value. And so coinage was born. The exhibition explores the role of money from antiquity to the present day, and its vital role in the contemporary economy.
The museum is comprehensive, well-designed and highly educational, and the building is well worth a visit.
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