Musée des Arts et Métiers

The Musée des Arts et Métiers occupies the former priory of Saint-Martin-des-Champs in the 3rd arrondissement of Paris, a medieval structure that lends the museum an atmosphere unlike any conventional science institution. Founded in 1794 by Henri Grégoire to preserve scientific instruments and industrial inventions, it is one of the oldest museums of technology in the world. Its permanent collection spans astronomy, mechanics, construction, communication, and energy, tracing the development of tools and machines from the early modern period to the twentieth century.

Among its most celebrated exhibits is Foucault's original pendulum, which hangs in the converted abbey church at the heart of the building, alongside Blaise Pascal's mechanical calculators and early aviation prototypes. The church itself, with its vaulted stone ceiling, houses vintage automobiles and aircraft in a setting that draws as much on architectural heritage as on scientific history. Entry tickets give access to the full permanent collection across three floors of galleries.