An innovative museum

A reference collection

The missions of the Cité internationale de la tapisserie is to preserve, enrich and highlight this great craftsmanship. With a new cultural and scientific project, the Cité builds a reference collection to trace five centuries and a half of weavings in Aubusson.

A young, developing collection

The Departmental Museum of tapestry in Aubusson was created in 1981. Its collection is still young, like the museum's history. With its label « Musée de France », it belongs to the Departmental Council of Creuse. 

The progressive development of a reference collection

The Cité de la tapisserie reasserts the original intention of building a reference collection offering a complete view of the production of tapestries in Aubusson from the XVth century to nowadays.

A few figures

440 tapestries and carpets, including 330 wall tapestries.

16,000 Graphic artworks from the collections of the museum and the National School of Decorative Art, and among them about 4,500 models and drawings

50 pieces of woven furniture

20 tools and weaving equipment

5,000 woven pieces, deposits of the National School of Decorative Art. Mainly samples, a few tapestries of medium size, made by trainees. These pieces draw the history of the institution since it was created in 1884, and show the evolution in weaving training.

600 pieces of Saracen embroidery, made by the students of the School for girls in the National School of Decorative Art between 1880 and 1918