Nicéphore Niépce Museum (Musée Nicéphore Niépce)
A museum of photography in the home town of its inventor, from the first cameras to digital images.
- Museum
- 35 min from Beaune
- Allow 1 to 2 hours
- Chalon-sur-Saône
€125one way from Beaune with a private driver
At a glance
- Official website
- museeniepce.com
Getting there
Private driver from Beaune: 35 min by road (35 km), €125 one way for the whole car.
Or add it to our half-day wine tour plus one hour, €360.
Coming by train or plane? Transfers from stations and airports →
About the place
Nicéphore Niépce, the inventor of photography, was born in Chalon-sur-Saône in 1765. The museum named after him stands on the Saône quays and explains how photography works, from his first experiments to the digital image. Its collections of photographs and objects number close to three million, and temporary exhibitions change through the year.
What you will see
The permanent route explains the principles of photography rather than simply lining up famous pictures. Professional prints sit beside amateur snapshots, and the illustrated press has a large place. The highlight is the room devoted to Niépce himself, with his camera and early plates. Temporary exhibitions of historic and contemporary photographers fill the other galleries, and an online database lets you browse more than 20,000 images from the collections.
History
Niépce, a landowner from a Chalon family, spent years trying to fix the images formed inside a camera. Using bitumen of Judea, a substance that hardens in light, he made the View from the Window at Le Gras at his country house near Chalon in 1827. It is the oldest surviving photograph taken with a camera. In 1829 he went into partnership with Louis Daguerre, but he died in 1833.
In 1861 a local learned society gathered his equipment and papers, which were long kept at the Musée Denon. In 1972 the city decided to create a museum devoted to photography, and it opened in 1974 in the former Hôtel des Messageries Royales, an old coaching office on the quay at Port Villiers. Its prize exhibit is the Chambre de la Découverte, the first camera used by Niépce.
Planning your visit
Tips for your visit
The museum faces the Saône at Port Villiers, a short walk from the cathedral and the old town. Allow one to two hours. It is closed on Tuesdays and public holidays; check the official website for opening times and current exhibitions. In summer, pair it with the Maison Nicéphore Niépce at Saint-Loup-de-Varennes, where the first photograph was made.
Around here
What to combine with Nicéphore Niépce Museum on the same day, nearest first.
Questions
Nicéphore Niépce Museum is about 35 min from Beaune by road (35 km). With a private driver, the trip from Beaune starts at €125 for the whole car, up to 4 guests.
Did you know? The oldest surviving camera photograph, made by Niépce just outside Chalon in 1827, is not kept in Burgundy. It belongs to the Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas in Austin.
Sources
Nicéphore Niépce Museum with a private driver
€125 one way from Beaune · up to 4 guests