The Heritage Days are among the marquee events of the month of September. This cultural gathering, which takes place across Europe, invites everyone to enjoy a host of visits and brand-new activities for all audiences. The program is often free, making it a must-see deal. For the occasion, many monuments and institutions participate: museums, castles, gardens, churches, and even places usually closed to the public. A creative way to rediscover our cultural heritage from a fresh perspective!
The event has something to captivate art and history enthusiasts, as well as the curious souls thirsting for discovery. During the 43e édition, anticipated on 19 and 20 September 2026, Paris and the entire Île-de-France region become the playground for explorers hungry for new experiences. Why not take the opportunity to travel back in time while diving into the heart of the treasures of the patrimoine francilien?
Provins, Île-de-France's largest medieval city, with many treasures to discover
In Seine-et-Marne, just a few kilometers from the capital, lies the medieval town of Provins, a testimony to its trading past and lively fairs. Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, this town straight out of the Middle Ages is brimming with historical treasures, from the Tour César to its rose-based culinary specialties, not to mention its imposing ramparts! [Read more]
The town of Provins, nestled in Seine-et-Marne, is well worth a visit. Here, an immersion in the Middle Ages awaits in the heart of the medieval city, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Behind the high walls, you experience a genuine leap back in time as you wander these cobbled lanes where monuments, shopfronts, and gourmet stops follow one another. For the Heritage Days 2026, Provins unveils a program full of captivating visits for young and old alike! Whether you’re with family, friends, as a couple, or solo, this remarkable medieval city has plenty to offer for a weekend... that’s steeped in history!
Heritage Days 2026 at the Saint-Esprit wine cellar in Provins
Self-guided tour of the Caveau du Saint-Esprit
Self-guided tour of the vaulted ground-floor hall (12th century) of the former Holy Spirit Hospital, founded in 1177 by Henry the Liberal, Count of Champagne.
Participation terms: Free admission - No reservation required
Hours: Saturday, September 19, 2026 — 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM | Sunday, September 20, 2026 — 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM
The Dragon and Lézarde Company Presents Plays and Fables
The “Dragon and the Lizard Company” brings the monument to life by guiding a journey through Provins, opening with an introductory poem dedicated to the town, and then moving through Feydeau with Don’t Go Walkin’ Naked to Tailleur pour dames, a hint of Morgane Guelti and La Patiente endormie, a dash of Courteline with Les Boulingrins, not forgetting the fables of Jean de La Fontaine—from La Cigale et la Fourmi to Le Corbeau et le Renard, and La Grenouille qui voulait se faire aussi grosse que le bœuf—along with Jacques Prévert’s poems Fleurs et couronnes, all interwoven with original texts by Vicky: La visite des souterrains, La collégiale Saint-Quiriace and À la conquête de la tour César.
Participation conditions: Subject to availability - Free | No reservation required
Schedule: Saturday, September 19, 2026 — 14:00–14:45, 15:00–15:45, 16:00–16:45, 17:00–17:45 | Sunday, September 20, 2026 — 11:00–12:00, 14:00–14:45, 15:00–15:45, 16:00–16:45
Heritage Days 2026 at the Saint-Quiriace Collegiate Church in Provins
Self-guided tour of Saint-Quiriace Collegiate Church
Public access to this ancient collegiate church (12th–17th centuries). Its original plan was highly ambitious, continued in the 13th century but never completed, and it was given a dome in the 17th century. Until the Revolution it housed a large and influential chapter. Joan of Arc passed through here on her return from the coronation of Charles VII. Restored in 2021, the former chapter house has just regained its original volume and its medieval painted decorations.
Participation requirements : Visit outside religious services - Free | No reservation needed
Hours: Saturday, September 19, 2026 – 10:00–18:00 | Sunday, September 20, 2026 – 10:00–18:00
Heritage Days 2026 at Grange aux Dimes in Provins
Audio-guided tours of the Grange aux Dîmes
Audio-guided tours of this 12th-century merchant house, among the best preserved in Provins. Marvel at the refined architecture of the chambers with carved capitals and ribbed vaults. The building served as a covered market during the fairs until the end of the 13th century, then as a warehouse for tithes from the 14th century. Today, this dwelling presents a themed display, "Provins in the Time of the Champagne Fairs," featuring reconstructions that evoke the merchants and the trades guilds of the era.
Participation terms: Free admission - No reservation required
Hours: Saturday, September 19, 2026 from 10:00 to 18:00 | Sunday, September 20, 2026 from 10:00 to 18:00
Heritage Days 2026 at the Provins and Provinois Museum
Exhibition: Maurice MOURLOT (1906–1983) — Painter, Lithographer, Engraver, Illustrator
The work of Maurice MOURLOT (1906-1983) is particularly well represented in French public collections: at the Bibliothèque nationale de France, at the National Museum of Natural History, at the Roubaix Piscine, and at the Museum of Fine Arts and Archaeology in Besançon… Yet the most representative range of Mourlot’s artistic diversity is housed at the Musée de Provins et du Provinois, with drawings, lithographs, wood engravings, oil paintings, and a curated selection of posters from the exhibitions dedicated to him since the 1980s.
A comprehensive retrospective devoted entirely to him will run from September 19 to December 20, 2026, initiated by Provins City’s Heritage Service, with support from SHAAP and AdAJH.
### About the painter and engraver Maurice Mourlot…
Maurice Mourlot was born in Paris in 1906, the ninth child in the family. His father was a lithographic printer. He grew up in an exceptionally artistic environment and, within the family printing shop, helped produce lithographs for some of the great 20th‑century masters — Matisse, Chagall, Braque, Miró, Bonnard, Derain, and Raoul Dufy. His craftsmanship made him a key figure in reviving artistic lithography.
Alongside this, he built an original personal body of work—paintings, drawings, wood engravings, and lithographs. Awarded the City of Paris Painting Prize in 1937, he spent a year in the Maghreb (in 1938) and returned with numerous works capturing landscapes, animals, still lifes, and market scenes. He never stopped living in Paris, occasionally spending extended periods in Saint-Loup-de-Naud near Provins, where he had bought the old schoolhouse and painted, most often on site, the life of the village and its familiar countryside. His style, while seemingly classical, is distinguished by a quiet humor, sometimes curious details, and a freedom of composition that subtly defies the rules of perspective.
Despite several exhibitions in France and abroad, his work long remained in the shadow of the fame of the printing house run by his brother Fernand, “Le Patron”… He died in 1983 in his small studio on Rue de la Tombe-Issoire in the 14th arrondissement of Paris. A discreet and modest artist, Mourlot lived for his art alone. Independent and detached from fashions, he left us a body of work of remarkable richness, attentive to people and the daily things of life—timeless…
Participation requirements: Free | No reservation required
Hours: Saturday, September 19, 2026, 11:00 AM–6:00 PM | Sunday, September 20, 2026, 11:00 AM–6:00 PM
Self-guided tour of the permanent collections of the Provins Museum and the Provinois
The Provins and Provinois Museum is housed in the Romanesque House (a listed historic monument), one of the town’s oldest civil buildings. Its façade, built with regular small stones, and the ground-floor hall date back to the 12th century. Spanning four levels and about ten rooms, the collections of the City and the Society for History and Archaeology of the Provins district chart the history of Provins and its region from prehistory to the eve of World War I.
Conditions of participation : Free entry, subject to the venue's capacity - Free | No reservation
Hours: Saturday, September 19, 2026 — 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM | Sunday, September 20, 2026 — 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM
Guided tour of the exhibition "Maurice MOURLOT 1906-1983 - Painter, lithographer, engraver, and draftsman"
Guided tour of the exhibition Maurice MOURLOT, led by Luc Duchamp, Chief Heritage Conservator and curator of the show.
The work of Maurice MOURLOT (1906–1983) is particularly well represented in French public collections: the BnF, the National Museum of Natural History, La Piscine in Roubaix, the Museum of Fine Arts and Archaeology in Besançon… Yet the most representative overview of MOURLOT’s diverse art is housed at the Musée de Provins et du Provinois: drawings, lithographs, wood engravings, oil paintings, not to mention a selection of posters from exhibitions dedicated to him since the 1980s.
This retrospective is wholly devoted to his work from September 19 to December 20, 2026, at the initiative of the Provins City Heritage Service, with support from SHAAP and AdAJH.
About the painter and engraver Maurice Mourlot…
Maurice Mourlot was born in Paris in 1906, the ninth child in his family. His father ran a lithography workshop. He grew up in an exceptional artistic environment and, within the family printery, contributed to the production of lithographs by major 20th‑century masters such as Matisse, Chagall, Braque, Miró, Bonnard, Derain, and Raoul Dufy. His craftsmanship made him one of the key players in the revival of artistic lithography.
At the same time, he built an original personal body of work—paintings, drawings, wood engravings, and lithographs. Winner of the City of Paris painting prize in 1937, he spent a year in the Maghreb in 1938 and returned with numerous works depicting landscapes, animals, still lifes, and market scenes. He never stopped living in Paris, with occasional extended sojourns in Saint-Loup-de-Naud near Provins, where he had bought the old schoolhouse and often painted plein air scenes of village life and familiar landscapes. His seemingly classical style is distinguished by a quiet humor, sometimes odd details, and a freedom of composition that subtly liberates him from traditional perspective rules.
Despite several exhibitions in France and abroad, his work long remained in the shadow of the renown of the printing workshop led by his brother Fernand, “Le Patron”… He died in 1983 in his small studio on Rue de la Tombe-Issoire, in Paris’s 14th arrondissement. A discreet and modest artist, Mourlot lived solely for his art. Independent and resistant to fashion, he left us a remarkably rich body of work, attentive to the beings and things of everyday life, timeless in its appeal…
Participation conditions: Subject to availability - Limited to 19 participants - Free of charge
Schedule: Saturday, September 19, 2026 from 3:00 PM to 3:45 PM | Sunday, September 20, 2026 from 3:00 PM to 3:45 PM
Heritage Days 2026 at the Benedictine Priory of Saint-Ayoul in Provins
Self-guided audio tour of the Benedictine priory at Saint-Ayoul
An audio-guided tour (“Provins Tourisme”) of the cloister, the chapter house, the south chapel, the Benedictine chapel and the lantern tower (11th–18th centuries), all meticulously restored. The tour will be complemented by a display of the stained glass by artist Udo Zembok.
Participation conditions: Nave visit outside of religious services – Free | No reservation required
Hours: Saturday, September 19, 2026 — 10:00 AM ⤏ 6:00 PM | Sunday, September 20, 2026 — 10:00 AM ⤏ 6:00 PM
Self-guided tour of Saint-Ayoul Church
Free tours of the nave and side aisles (12th–16th centuries) fully restored; the high altar, side altars, and 17th-century woodwork are listed as historic monuments; stained glass by painter-glazier Gilles Rousvoal.
Participation rules: Visit outside of religious services – Free | No booking required
Hours : Saturday, September 19, 2026 – 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM | Sunday, September 20, 2026 – 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM
A look at the grand organ of Saint-Ayoul Church
The Saint-Ayoul Church organ in Provins, originally built for the Jouy Abbey in 1777, was moved to Saint-Ayoul in 1792. Historical records are unfortunately sparse, and to date the identity of the organ builder remains unknown. The instrument has undergone several interventions over its life, but has not been fundamentally overhauled; it still preserves a large share of materials dating from the Ancien Régime. An analysis of its components suggests an initial transformation around the time of its 1792 transfer to Provins. The oldest surviving registration (from 1928) indicates that the organ’s character was likely remodelled stylistically in the second half of the 19th century, adopting Romantic stops: in addition to a one-semitone pitch raise, the pipes bear marks showing that their timbral balance was altered through selective notching and the addition of teeth on the bevels. A third notable intervention was carried out by Jules Bossier in 1947. The most recent restoration, completed in 1982 by the Benoist and Sarélot workshops, redirected the instrument toward a classical French idiom.
Participation terms: Subject to availability - Free | No reservations required
Hours : Saturday, September 19, 2026 - 2:00 PM ⤏ 5:00 PM | Sunday, September 20, 2026 - 2:00 PM ⤏ 5:00 PM
Dates and Opening Time
From September 19, 2026 to September 20, 2026
Location
Provins
77160 Provins
77160 Provins
Route planner
Accessibility info
Official website
www.provins.net
Provins, Île-de-France's largest medieval city, with many treasures to discover
