The Musée de Préhistoire d’Île-de-France, located in Nemours in Seine-et-Marne, safeguards more than two million prehistoric artefacts. It houses 2,500 objects on display, spanning from the Early Paleolithic to the Second Iron Age. The Heritage Days 2026 offer a unique chance to (re)discover this natural heritage.
Most of the collection comes from archaeological discoveries made by local archaeologists since the 19th century. The first archaeological discoveries in Île-de-France were made by Edmond Doigneau in the Beauregards massif (Nemours). It was not until the inter-war years that Abbé André Nouel, Raoul Daniel and Édouard Soudan found numerous signs of life in these massifs.
It was therefore decided to build a museum in the geological setting of Nemours, in the Stampian sandstone massifs that have been home to peoples since prehistoric times. The several-hectare site, planted with coniferous and oak trees, is typical of a late Palaeolithic ecosystem.
For this special weekend, the museum opens its doors to the public free of charge on Sunday September 20, 2026. Young and old can take advantage of the open doors to admire these exceptional collections and enjoy the special activities.
Lectures on the prehistoric rock art of Île-de-France, a dialogue with contemporary creation
2:00 PM - Boris Valentin conference - Research on prehistoric rock art in the Île-de-France region
Rock engravings across more than 3,000 small cavities in the sandstone chaos between Nemours and Rambouillet, a few animal figures, hundreds of grooves often arranged in grids... How much of this is genuinely prehistoric? What rituals might they reflect? And how can we safeguard this exceptional heritage?
Boris Valentin is a professor at Université Paris 1 and coordinates a program dedicated to promoting and researching the prehistoric rock engravings of the Fontainebleau massif.
Conditions de participation : No advance booking required, subject to availability - Open to all audiences aged 14 and up - Free | No booking required
Schedule: Saturday, September 19, 2026 — 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Narrated film by Yannick Haenel & Linda Tuloup, “There Must Be Water from Stone and Fire”
3:00 PM - The storytelling film by Yannick Haenel & Linda Tuloup - Il faut de l'eau de la pierre et du feu
From a photograph — a naked woman at the entrance of a cave — writer Yannick Haenel and photographer/video artist Linda Tuloup embark on a poetic journey toward an archaic motif: a pubic carving etched into a cave wall over 20,000 years ago... From this quest emerges a film shot in the heart of the Fontainebleau forest. The two authors accompany the screening with a live, two-voice reading.
Participation requirements: No advance booking required, subject to availability - Open to all audiences aged 14 and over - Free | No booking required
Schedule: Saturday, September 19, 2026 — 3:00 PM–4:30 PM
Talk by Raphaël Dallaporta & Rémi Labrusse - Blurred memory: from Chauvet to Fontainebleau
4:30 p.m. - Talk by Raphaël Dallaporta & Rémi Labrusse - Blurred Memory: From Chauvet to Fontainebleau
Drawing on their collaborative work at the Chauvet Cave and their explorations of the carved sandstone in the Fontainebleau forest, they explore the persistence of the human gesture across deep time. Their dialogue illuminates these enigmatic signs etched in stone for nearly ten millennia. Together, they examine what these traces reveal about our relationship to time, image, and memory.
Raphaël Dallaporta is an artist and photographer. Rémi Labrusse holds a PhD in art history and teaches at the École des hautes études en sciences sociales in Paris.
Participation requirements: No reservation required, subject to availability - Open to the public aged 14 and up - Free | No reservation required
Times: Saturday, September 19, 2026 — 4:30 PM to 6:00 PM
The archaeologist's grand laboratory
Peek behind the scenes of an archaeologist’s work! Learn to piece together a flint core or pottery fragments like a puzzle, lead the investigation to identify the skulls of our ancestors, and try your hand at using flint tools or a fire-making bow drill…
The archaeologist’s big lab is a hands-on space for demonstrations and a range of experiments, set up and run by the museum team for Heritage Days. It will be open continuously from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Participation conditions: Walk-in access, subject to availability - Open to everyone aged 5 and up - Free
Hours : Sunday, September 20, 2026 — 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM
Guided tour of the exhibition "That’s impressive! When archaeology takes an interest in our waste"
Follow the guide and discover that archaeology isn’t just about treasure. Every fragment of material culture matters to archaeologists, and waste is no exception. They, too, carry valuable insights into how our ancestors lived.
This exhibition, by tracing the story of our refuse, highlights often-unseen collections drawn from major digs conducted in Seine-et-Marne.
Participation requirements: No advance booking is required, subject to availability - Open to everyone 9 years and older - Free
Schedule: Sunday, September 20, 2026 — 11:00 to 11:45, 13:00 to 13:45, 14:30 to 15:15, 15:30 to 16:15, 17:00 to 17:45
Guided architectural tour of the building
Since 1979, the Préhistoire Museum of Île-de-France has stood at the heart of a woodland. Designed by architect Roland Simounet, the museum plays with the land’s lines and multiplies the frames between inside and forest. Constructive modernity resonates with the permanence of archaic forms, evoking shelters and dug-out spaces. Listed as a Monument Historique, the museum is now recognized as a masterpiece of France’s second modernity.
A guided tour led by Hugo Trutt (@croquebrique), a tour guide specialized in architecture, invites visitors to rediscover this singular dialogue between architecture, forest, and the long temporalities of prehistory.
Participation requirements: Limited seats – advance booking required; registrations will open later – open to everyone aged 14 and up – Free | Booking required – https://journeesdupatrimoine.culture.gouv.fr/
Schedule: Sunday, September 20, 2026 — 3:30 PM to 5:00 PM
A program to whet your appetite!
Dates and Opening Time
On September 20, 2026
Location
Ile de France Prehistory Museum
48 Avenue Etienne Dailly
77140 Nemours
Route planner
Accessibility info
Prices
Free
Recommended age
From 5 to 100 years old
Average duration
2 h
Official website
www.musee-prehistoire-idf.fr
