Palais du Tau, Reims

The Palais du Tau in Reims is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the most important repositories of medieval royal artefacts in France, located directly adjacent to Reims Cathedral in France's Grand Est region. The palace served as the official residence of the Archbishop of Reims and, on coronation days, as the staging point where French kings dressed in their royal regalia before entering the cathedral for their anointing. The current building dates largely from the 17th century, though sections of the earlier Gothic chapel and great hall — the Salle du Tau — survive from the 13th and 15th centuries. The centrepiece of the collection is the original sculptural programme removed from the cathedral exterior for conservation: massive 14th–15th-century statues of Goliath and the kings of Judah that once stood on the west facade are displayed at eye level, allowing rare close examination of Gothic master carvers' work that is otherwise seen only at great height. The treasury holds royal coronation regalia including Charlemagne's talisman (a 9th-century reliquary pendant), the chalice of Saint-Rémi, and fragments of the 13th-century coronation tunic. The Salle du Tau great hall is hung with 15th-century tapestries depicting the life of Clovis, totalling over 50 metres in combined length. The palace garden offers a quieter view of the cathedral's apse that few visitors discover. A 1-hour visit covers the main collections; admission is free on the first Sunday of the month.