Stéphane Bern 's Mission Patrimoine reveals its 2025 choices, with102 departmental sites across mainland France and overseas. They will benefit from the financial support of the eighth edition of the Mission Patrimoine games launched on September 1, 2025. Among these architectural treasures are 6 nuggets in the Ile-de-France region, reflecting the rich heritage of our départements.
TheHôtel de Magny in Paris's 5th arrondissement tops the list of Parisian winners. Built between 1696 and 1700 by Pierre Bullet, architect to Louis XIV, this private mansion has been classified as a historic monument since 1993, and today houses the administration of the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle. Nestled in the heart of the Jardin des Plantes, the building has been home to some of France's greatest naturalists, including Georges Cuvier, one of the fathers of paleontology and comparative anatomy, Etienne Geoffroy de Saint-Hilaire, pioneer of zoology, and Jean-Baptiste de Lamarck, precursor of the theory of evolution.
This exceptional example of Parisian aristocratic architecture is in urgent need of restoration. Weakened by the years, with the building sinking into the ground and its facade in a state of disrepair, the Hôtel de Magny is the subject of an appeal for donations launched by the Muséum in partnership with the Fondation du patrimoine. The work, estimated at 11.5 million euros, is due to start in autumn 2025 and will take two years to complete.
The hotel's architecture features a sober layout typical of the period, with regular bays of windows fitted with architraves and topped with dormers. The facades feature sculpted elements, notably on the northwest face, where a bas-relief pediment depicts a marine scene. Between 2008 and 2017, the building housed the Cabinet d'Histoire du Jardin des Plantes, enabling visitors to discover the evolution of this major scientific institution.
In Seine-et-Marne, the Rotonde ferroviaire de Longueville is one of the selected sites. In the Yvelines region, we find the Dovecote on the Plaisir estate, a testament to historic agricultural architecture.
Essonne is represented by the Tour de Guinette in Étampes, an emblematic medieval vestige. Hauts-de-Seine features the Portail des Escargots in Suresnes, while Seine-Saint-Denis presents the Parc de la mairie in Clichy-sous-Bois. Finally, Val-de-Marne presents the Mire de Cassini in Villejuif.
These selections reveal the diversity of Ile-de-France's heritage, from religious buildings to industrial sites, gardens and scientific infrastructures. Over 770 new projects have been registered for the 2025 edition on the platform, testifying to citizens' commitment to heritage preservation.
Since 2018, Mission Patrimoine has helped over 1,000 sites. Today, more than 75% of the projects selected during the first 7 editions have already been saved: 290 are underway and 440 have been completed. This success is underpinned by the success of FDJ UNITED's Mission Patrimoine games, which sell for 15 euros and offer the chance to win up to 1.5 million euros.
The prize money for each site will be announced at the end of the year, based on sales of the games. For the 18 emblematic sites in the regions, the announcement will take place during the European Heritage Days on September 19, 20 and 21, 2025. This original initiative continues to mobilize the French around the preservation of their architectural and cultural heritage, transforming each lottery ticket into a civic gesture in support of heritage preservation.
The2026 call for projects is already open on the website for all owners, associations and local authorities wishing to report sites at risk. Applications for emblematic sites must be submitted by November 16, 2025, and those for departmental sites by February 28, 2026.
Official website
www.missionbern.fr
