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| Musée de PLEIN AIR du QUERCY, Cuzals | 12 miles E |
Our favourite museum is not really a museum at all: La Musée de Plein Air in Cuzals, near Sauliac sur Célé, is an outdoor evocation of french rural life in the 18th and 19th centuries. Wander round farmhouses and farmyards, eat bread freshly baked from an old wood-oven served by smiling helpers in period costume and clamber over old farm-machinery. Kids love it! Open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. in July and August, 09:30-18:30 in June, and afternoons only in April, May, September and October. Closed Saturdays. There's a simple bar/restaurant, and picnic area.
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| Musée de la PREHISTOIRE, Pech Merle | 8 miles E |
 | The museum is at the mouth of the prehistoric cave, and is crammed with fascinating exhibits on the life and times of the people who decorated it 25,000 years ago, as well as explanations of the geological conditions which created it. The visit to the museum includes a 20 minute film; entry to the museum is included in the price of the ticket to visit the cave.
Open daily: 09:30-12:00 & 13:30-17:00.
RESERVATIONS ESSENTIAL in July/August. Tel. 05 65 31 27 05.
Photo R.Delon, Castelet 92100 Boulogne, France
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| Musée CHAMPOLLION, Figeac | 30 miles E |
Figeac is the birthplace of Jean-François Champollion, who deciphered egyptian hieroglyphics with the aid of the Rosetta Stone, [right] discovered in Egypt by Napoleon's troops in 1799, and subsequently stored by the English in the British Musem. The Figeac musem holds a number of copies, including a huge reproduction laid out as the floor of a courtyard, as well as some egyptian mummies, and a host of Champollion memorabilia.
Open 10:00-12:00 & 14:30-18:30 every day except Mondays.
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| Musée d'ART SACRÉ, Rocamadour | 30 miles N |
 | The museum contains a number of religious relics, statues, paintings, enamels and other religious artefacts, some dating back to the 12th century. The museum also has an excellent display on the origins of the shrines at this centre of pilgrimage.
Open daily from 09:00-19:00 .
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| Musée ZADKINE, Les Arques | 24 miles NW |
The russian sculptor Ossip Zadkine made his home in the beautiful village of Les Arques for 6 months of the year from 1934 until the year of his death. The museum houses a number of his fine sculptures, as does the church opposite, which is a romanesque gem. A visit to Les Arques can be happily combined with a meal at La Recréation, one of our favourite restaurants, which is sited in the old village school.
Open every day of the year except Xmas, New Year's Day, 1st May & 1st November. June-Sep, plus school-holidays and weekends : 10:00-13:00 & 14:00-19:00. Otherwise 14:00-17h:00. |  |
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| Musée JEAN LURÇAT, Saint-Laurent-les-Tours | 30 miles NNE |
 | Lurçat was the leading 20th century tapestry designer, bringing a new approach to the art. In 1946, he bought the striking hill-top site of Les Tours de Saint-Laurent whose stark 12th and 14th century towers dominate the surrounding landscape, and the house was opened to the public after his death in 1966. Every room still bears the imprint of his time there, as well as several fine examples of his huge modern tapestries.
Open from 16th to 30th April, and 14th July to 30 September: 09:30-12:00 & 14:30-18:30. |
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| Musée HENRI MARTIN, Cahors | 12 miles W |
Set in a 17th century bishop\'s palace, the museum houses a small number of works by this impressionist painter, and hosts various exhibitions of contemporary art or photographs.
Open 11:00-18:00, except Sundays, when 14:00-18:00 and Tuesdays, when it is closed.
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| Musée du VIN, St. Cirq-Lapopie | 8 miles E |
 | This tiny museum is in the back of a wine-shop in the picturesque village. We like it for the smell-tests: see how refined YOUR palette is!
Open daily. |
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