Located just a few blocks from the Cathedral of Notre Dame, this medieval storehouse is easy to add to anyone’s Paris bucket list.

By Samantha Krauskopf

PARIS – With more than 140 museums, from the Louvre and Musée Picasso to one devoted to the French postal service (the Musée de La Poste), it’s easy to see how the Musée de Cluny sometimes gets overlooked.

Focusing on the medieval period, the Cluny has artifacts that range from stain-glass windows to full-body armor. Built in 1334 as the Hôtel de Cluny, the museum building is itself part of the story, so there is an extensive history on the building inside, as well.

Rooms are dedicated to a specific theme, so, for the stain-glass windows, the room is painted in a dark color with lights illuminating the windows. Sculptures take up large rooms in which you can easily study the artifact without fear of bumping into either it or another visitor. And tapestries cover every wall.

Off with their heads: The kings’ heads once displayed at the Cathedral of Notre Dame. The bodies that go with them are also on display.

One of the more interesting aspects of the display arrays the marble heads of kings, sculptures that were originally located on the Cathedral of Notre Dame. They were cut off during the Seven Years War as an expression of protest.

 
The museum also has the horn of a unicorn. At least, people hundreds of years ago believed it the horn came from a unicorn. Conventional wisdom today sources the horn from a narwhal, a toothed whale with a large, horn-like tusk that protrudes from its mouth.

 
Among the museum’s best known art are of the six tapestries of the series, “La Dame à la licorne,” or “The Lady and the Unicorn.” Woven around the year 1500 in wool and silk, five represent each of the five senses, while a sixth, more mysterious tapestry features the motto, “À Mon Seul Désir.” Does this mean “my sole desire”? Or, “my unique desire”? Or perhaps, “according to my desire alone”? No one knows for sure.

So, not only does the Cluny have works and even categories of artifacts you can’t find at other of Paris’s museums, but you can actually enjoy freedom of movement and get up close to the exhibits. Compare this with the scene at the Mona Lisa at the Louvre, where hordes of tourists trying to take selfies prohibit any sort of genuine interaction with the masterpiece.

No, at the Cluny, you can take time to study the artifacts and to read the background without having the pressure of people hovering over or around you. And the museum is easy to navigate. Each room has a display plaque with a corresponding description of what is inside, and the rooms can be visited chronologically (or not).

Most of the descriptions have English translation, and for each of the large rooms, there are laminated sheets that explain the artifacts in further detail. Make sure you go on a mild day; there is no air conditioning except in the tapestry rooms.