Aside from guided tours, there are museum spaces not to be missed, part of the heritage but also part of the local history and rich past. These facilities provide a better understanding of this territory with its rich past, with different themes or scenographies.
The Musée Sandelin is one fine example, with an incredible and priceless collection of works of art with nearly 3,000 works and objets d’art ranging from the Middle Ages to the 19th century. Renovated in 2022, this fine arts museum is housed in a magnificent 18th-century mansion and is one of 1218 labeled “Musées de France”.
Also in this label, the Henri Dupuis museum, closed to the public since 2004, is an impressive natural history collection with birds from all over the world or thousands of classified shells. The museum can be visited on special occasions, but for a chance to catch a glimpse of this museum with its very special atmosphere, we recommend taking part in the “Le Secret de Dupuis” escape game.
The Maison de l’archéologie de Thérouanne is also well worth a look. Who would have imagined that in this peaceful rural village once stood a very important religious center with a cathedral at its summit. Since 2019, the Pays d’Art et d’Histoire has been running the Maison de l’Archéologie to remind us of the glorious past, but above all thanks to a unique and revolutionary process: preventive archaeology.
The Centre d’interprétation de l’architecture et du patrimoine (or CIAP for those in the know) will soon house the Maison du Patrimoine (for part, the other being housed at the Maison de l’Archéologie in Thérouanne)and will be nothing less than a showcase for the architectural identity of a territory whose cathedral is ultimately just a sample of the rich heritage that generations of builders have erected over the centuries, with a common fierce desire to always push back the technological limits of their time and the boundaries of the imaginary.
