European Heritage Days 2026: Maison Poincaré, Paris’s Mathematics Museum

The Maison Poincaré aims to help you fall in love with math this Saturday, September 19, 2026, with a range of activities organized for Heritage Days. Here’s the program for you.

Opening in September 2023 in the 5th arrondissement of Paris, the Maison Poincaré is dedicated to mathematics, its links with other scientific disciplines, and the influence it has on our society and everyday life. Children and adults alike can rediscover mathematics from a new angle, thanks to a tour and interactive modules. Physics, chemistry, but also philosophy, culture, arts... Mathematics is everywhere!

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The Maison Poincaré, nestled in the heart of Paris's Latin Quarter, invites you to discover the capital's very first mathematics museum from September 30, 2023. Inspired by the world's greatest science museums, this unique venue promises to illuminate the history, influence and wonders of mathematics for all the curious! We tell you all about it! [Read more]

This Saturday, September 19, 2026, the Maison Poincaré opens its doors free of charge to the public for an exceptional weekend. The Paris museum is taking part in the 43rd edition of the Heritage Days, and offers special activities during these two days.

As every year, the Journées du Patrimoine captivate us with open doors, workshops, tours and extraordinary discoveries that let us explore the cultural and historical sites of Paris and d'Île-de-France. An unmissable date, to be experienced at the Maison Poincaré on Saturday 19 September 2026.

What’s on the agenda for the 2026 Heritage Days at the Poincaré House:

Calculating machines: a heritage at risk
A conference dedicated to calculating machines will draw on the collection kept at the Institut Henri Poincaré (IHP), made up of early calculating and drawing machines from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The IHP also housed, in the 1930s, some of France’s first computation laboratories, which developed calculating devices as part of a scientific mobilization, only to see them disappear in the upheaval of 1940. It later hosted one of the country’s first computers.

This heritage underscores a paradox: while some historic pieces have been preserved, a substantial part of 20th‑century scientific and computing heritage was destroyed or scattered. The gathering aims to raise awareness of this fragility and to examine the contemporary challenges of preserving it.

Open to the general public, Pierre Mounier-Kuhn’s “carte blanche” lecture—delivered by a historian of computing who teaches the history of science and technology at CentraleSupélec—will blend historical storytelling with critical reflection, and will pose a central question: how can we preserve, present, and transmit digital heritage?
Participation conditions: Advance booking highly recommended, subject to availability. - Free | Booking required - https://billetterie-maison-poincare.ihp.fr
Schedule: Friday, September 18, 2026 — 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM
Open House at the Poincaré House
On the occasion of this edition of European Heritage Days, Maison Poincaré — the museum where math comes to life — opens its doors to everyone free of charge.

Three 20-minute flash mediation sessions will be offered in the museum's exhibition spaces.
Participation terms: Free | No reservation required
Hours: Saturday, September 19, 2026 — 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM
Flash mediation sessions at the Maison Poincaré
On the occasion of this year’s European Heritage Days, Maison Poincaré — the museum where mathematics comes to life — opens its doors to everyone for free.

Three 30-minute flash sessions will be offered across the museum’s exhibition spaces.
Participation terms: Free | No reservation required
Schedule: Saturday, September 19, 2026 — 2:30 PM to 2:50 PM, 3:30 PM to 3:50 PM, 4:30 PM to 4:50 PM

You won't want to go home after this visit: discover the other museums open during the Journées du Patrimoine.

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