Musée National de Préhistoire, Les Eyzies

The Musée National de Préhistoire in Les Eyzies-de-Tayac-Sireuil, located in the heart of the Vézère valley in the Dordogne department of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, is the national reference museum for prehistoric archaeology in France and one of the leading prehistoric museums in the world. The Vézère valley — a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979 — contains the highest concentration of Palaeolithic decorated caves and prehistoric sites in Europe, and Les Eyzies has been the epicentre of prehistoric research since the discovery of Cro-Magnon man at the site of the same name in 1868. The current museum building, designed by Jean-Pierre Buffi and opened in 2004, is built into the cliffside of a yellow ochre limestone escarpment directly above the village and adjacent to the ruins of a medieval château. The collection comprises over 14,000 objects spanning approximately 400,000 years of human prehistory in the Dordogne, making it the largest prehistoric collection in France by object count. Key pieces include the carved and engraved antler bâtons de commandement, bone needles, and portable art objects from Upper Palaeolithic sites across the Périgord; the Venus de Sireuil, a translucent calcite statuette; casts of the most important cave paintings from the Vézère valley; and extensive osteological material including the Cro-Magnon skulls. The galleries are organised chronologically from the Lower Palaeolithic through the Mesolithic and Neolithic, with thematic sections addressing flint-knapping techniques, symbolic behaviour, burial practices, and the human colonisation of Europe. The museum also hosts research collections used by prehistorians from across the world. Outside, the cliff terrace offers panoramic views over the valley and the village.