Cité de la Céramique: Sèvres porcelain factory and national ceramics museum (92)

In Sèvres, the porcelain factory remains open for visits by appointment. The National Museum of Ceramics, for its part, is closed for renovations until 2030.

Nestling on the banks of the Seine, just a few minutes from Paris, Sèvres - Manufacture et Musée nationaux brings together the Sèvres porcelain factory, which has been in operation since the 18th century , and the national ceramics museum, created in the following century in the Hauts-de-Seine department. In 2025, the Cité de la Céramique, along with the Mobilier national, became part of the new public establishment Manufactures nationales - Sèvres & Mobilier national.

The National Ceramic Museum is closed for renovations through 2030. The Manufacture continues its work, and its workshops remain accessible for future visits by appointment, as noted on the official Sèvres site.

In 1740, with the support of Louis XV and Madame de Pompadour, the Manufacture de Vincennes was founded to compete with Chantilly and Meissen . In 1756, the factory was transferred to Sèvres, built between 1753 and 1756 by the architect Lindet, with a pediment bearing the clock of the former royal glassworks. Its mission is to produce ceramic objets d'art using artisanal techniques, whether re-editions of old models or contemporary creations.

The National Museum of Ceramics, one of the earliest museums dedicated to the art of fire, sits alongside the workshop. Founded in 1824 by Alexandre Brongniart, it showcases the factory’s own creations as well as ceramics from all ages and from every corner of the world, spanning pottery, tin-glaze, stoneware, Sèvres porcelain, and beyond.

The museum houses nearly 50,000 objects from civilizations across the globe, from ancient Greece to Chinese and Islamic porcelain, Hispano-Moorish tin-glazing, American earthenware, and contemporary artworks in stoneware or glass.

The collections trace the history of know-how, from creation and firing to gilding. When the museum is closed, guided tours of the Manufacture’s workshops offer another way to discover these crafts, by reservation.

Access to the museum galleries is suspended during renovations. To book a tour of the Manufacture’s workshops and learn about access requirements, consult the official Sèvres ticket office at Sèvres ticketing. The site is reachable via Line 9, Pont de Sèvres station, or by tram T2, Musée de Sèvres stop.