Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Silk Museum, Largentiere

Last weekend, was the Journee de Patrimonie in France, a yearly event celebrating heritage & cultural roots. All over the country, historical houses & buildings are opened & free to the public. What a wonderful idea !

So we took the opportunity to check out the Silk Museum in Largentiere (not free but reduced rates). In the 19th Century, Ardeche had a thriving silk industry & from there, all the silk were then transported to Lyon which is the silk capital. Many of the silk mills have since been abandoned, converted to gites, private homes or in this case, to a museum dedicated to silk.


The owners, Jose & Dominique Ruiz did a good job converting the old factory - you walk down a flight of stairs into a beautiful room which is part reception, part showroom, part screening room & part exhibition room. You start by watching 2 videos about how silkworms are raised & the working conditions in the 19th century. If like us, you have fidgety toddlers who refuse to sit still to watch the videos, they even have a desk equipped with puzzles & crayons to keep them occupied.

The guided tour then takes you into rooms restored with genuine silk throwers & ancient equipment on display. Not a very big museum but nevertheless interesting.










La filature du Moulinet
Musee de la soie
Route de Valgorge
07110 Largentiere

4 comments:

Moo said...

she is sooo adorable in the last picture!! just want to pick her up and give her a hug (hope i don't sound like a pervert haha)

petite fleur said...

Hehe she wanted to be like one of the mannequins.

Dutchess said...

Yes, I had to do a double take at your little mannequin too!

petite fleur said...

If only she would stay as still when she's home....