Musée des Confluences

The Musée des Confluences stands at 86 Quai Perrache, at the southern tip of the Presqu'île in Lyon's 2nd arrondissement, where the Rhône and the Saône meet, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of France. It opened in December 2014 after a long and costly construction, in a building designed by the Austrian architecture studio Coop Himmelb(l)au, which is a deconstructivist form of glass and steel, often described as a crystal cloud with a cantilevered tip pointing to the confluence. It replaced the earlier natural history museum of Lyon, whose collections were inherited from the 19th century and passed to this institution. The museum covers natural history, anthropology, the origins of life and the history of human societies, and it takes a thematic rather than chronological approach. The permanent exhibitions are organised around four questions: Origins, the stories of the world; Species, the web of life; Societies, the human theatre; and Eternities, visions of the beyond. Among the objects are dinosaur skeletons, minerals, a mummy collection, masks, ritual objects and instruments from Africa, Asia, Oceania and the Americas, and a display on the history of the sciences. The scenography is immersive and uses light and sound to place objects into stories, and temporary exhibitions address contemporary topics. The building has a rooftop terrace with views of the rivers, and the surrounding gardens and quays are being developed into a new district of Lyon. A tram line T1 stop and bus services link it to the centre. The museum is open Tuesday to Sunday, with a late evening on the first Thursday of each month. Prices are €12 for adults, with reductions, and free admission for under-18s is offered on certain conditions that visitors should check.