Learn About Criminal and Police History at this Intriguing Paris Museum
For crime buffs, French history lovers, and visitors looking for something a little different, the Paris Police Museum (Musee de la Prefecture) offers more than 2,000 original relics dating back from 1667, when Louis XIV created the post of Police Lieutenant, up until the Liberation from Germans forces in 1945 (and the end of World War II). The free Paris museum is housed within the actual police department of the 5th arrondissement, and the museum itself was established in 1909 with an already extensive collection, thanks to the 1900 Universal Exhibition.
With a total floor area of 5,600 square feet, the quiet and virtually unknown museum, housed on the third floor, offers a fascinating display of old police uniforms and weapons that were used to fight crime, as well as evidence from famous criminal and historical events that have taken place in Paris.
Read related feature: Weirdest and quirkiest museums in Paris
The museum is located on the third floor within the police station of the 5th arrondissement.
Address: 4, rue de la Montagne Sainte-Geneviève
75005 Paris
Metro: Maubert-Mutualité (Line 10)
Tel: +33 (0) 1 44 41 52 50
Visit the official website
The museum is open Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, and Saturday, 10:30am to 5:30pm. Closed on Sundays. Entry is free for all visitors.
The museum is laid out in chronological order and begins with a bang-- or a stabbing, as it were-- documenting the assassination of King Henry IV in May 1610 by François Ravaillac on a Parisian street, along with the tortures Ravaillac suffered before succumbing to his death an hour later.
The open police registry reveals elaborate French script that can easily be mistaken for a a book of poetry rather than an account of murder.
Manuscripts, 17th century maps of Paris, caricatures of villains, and various prints sit alongside old bill posters that, until the 20th century, were the chief means used to communicate police regulations to Paris citizens. Many of these edicts came directly from the kings. Sketches of Louis XVI bidding farewell to Marie Antoinette and his children before being taken to his execution by revolutionary guards are haunting even in pencil-form. Not to mention the commemorative medals that were available in celebration of his death. The king's son Louis XVII's autopsy is situated within the same case, as well details explaining how the child prince's heart was moved to the Basilica of Saint Denis just north of Paris (read our full guide).
Behind the next wall sits a replica of a guillotine, with the actual blade used during the Revolution on Place de Gréve (now the Place de l'Hotel de Ville where City Hall stands) enclosed in a glass case beside it. The blade weighs close to 20 pounds. Documents of the creation of the Commune of Paris follow, along with an eye-catching book written by J.F.N Dusaulchoy describing the agony that took place at the old prison (now a train station) at Saint Lazare under the leadership of despotic revolutionary leader Robespierre.
In order to bring an end to the instability within the police force during the early years of the Revolution, Napoleon Bonaparte established the role of the Préfet de Police in 1880. The room depicting this evolution is an absolute treasure trove of shackles, handcuffs, weapons, and theft devices of all shapes and sizes. There is a police phone calling station from Bois de Vincennes during the German occupation, an actual prison door (number 58) from the Mazas prison, and a tremendously long camera used for taking mug shots.
The room leads to a meticulous recreation of a police office between 1893 and 1914, complete with police mannequins taking a mug shot of a seated and shackled prisoner. Perhaps one of the most powerful items of memorabilia is what's left of a wooden pole used for mass executions by the Germans during World War II from Issy Les Moulineaux in the southwestern suburban area of Paris. There are numerous dents and pieces missing from the pole, along with pictures of it situated next to others, providing a truly haunting image. Pictures of the Parisian police force trying to hold off the Germans are taken from inside the very buildings where the police were shooting from. Relics from the 1945 Liberation of Paris soon follow, including the bottle of a Molotov cocktail.
Liked This? Read Related: Musée de l'Armée (Paris Army Museum)
With a total floor area of 5,600 square feet, the quiet and virtually unknown museum, housed on the third floor, offers a fascinating display of old police uniforms and weapons that were used to fight crime, as well as evidence from famous criminal and historical events that have taken place in Paris.
Read related feature: Weirdest and quirkiest museums in Paris
Location and Contact Information:
The museum is located on the third floor within the police station of the 5th arrondissement.
Address: 4, rue de la Montagne Sainte-Geneviève
75005 Paris
Metro: Maubert-Mutualité (Line 10)
Tel: +33 (0) 1 44 41 52 50
Visit the official website
Opening Hours and Tickets:
The museum is open Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, and Saturday, 10:30am to 5:30pm. Closed on Sundays. Entry is free for all visitors.
Sights and Attractions Nearby
?Some Tips For Your Visit
The museum is laid out in chronological order and begins with a bang-- or a stabbing, as it were-- documenting the assassination of King Henry IV in May 1610 by François Ravaillac on a Parisian street, along with the tortures Ravaillac suffered before succumbing to his death an hour later.
The open police registry reveals elaborate French script that can easily be mistaken for a a book of poetry rather than an account of murder.
Manuscripts, 17th century maps of Paris, caricatures of villains, and various prints sit alongside old bill posters that, until the 20th century, were the chief means used to communicate police regulations to Paris citizens. Many of these edicts came directly from the kings. Sketches of Louis XVI bidding farewell to Marie Antoinette and his children before being taken to his execution by revolutionary guards are haunting even in pencil-form. Not to mention the commemorative medals that were available in celebration of his death. The king's son Louis XVII's autopsy is situated within the same case, as well details explaining how the child prince's heart was moved to the Basilica of Saint Denis just north of Paris (read our full guide).
Behind the next wall sits a replica of a guillotine, with the actual blade used during the Revolution on Place de Gréve (now the Place de l'Hotel de Ville where City Hall stands) enclosed in a glass case beside it. The blade weighs close to 20 pounds. Documents of the creation of the Commune of Paris follow, along with an eye-catching book written by J.F.N Dusaulchoy describing the agony that took place at the old prison (now a train station) at Saint Lazare under the leadership of despotic revolutionary leader Robespierre.
In order to bring an end to the instability within the police force during the early years of the Revolution, Napoleon Bonaparte established the role of the Préfet de Police in 1880. The room depicting this evolution is an absolute treasure trove of shackles, handcuffs, weapons, and theft devices of all shapes and sizes. There is a police phone calling station from Bois de Vincennes during the German occupation, an actual prison door (number 58) from the Mazas prison, and a tremendously long camera used for taking mug shots.
The room leads to a meticulous recreation of a police office between 1893 and 1914, complete with police mannequins taking a mug shot of a seated and shackled prisoner. Perhaps one of the most powerful items of memorabilia is what's left of a wooden pole used for mass executions by the Germans during World War II from Issy Les Moulineaux in the southwestern suburban area of Paris. There are numerous dents and pieces missing from the pole, along with pictures of it situated next to others, providing a truly haunting image. Pictures of the Parisian police force trying to hold off the Germans are taken from inside the very buildings where the police were shooting from. Relics from the 1945 Liberation of Paris soon follow, including the bottle of a Molotov cocktail.
Liked This? Read Related: Musée de l'Armée (Paris Army Museum)
