Gallo-Roman Mosaics
Roman mosaics have been found throughout France, and today these can be seen in a number of museums around the country and in various restored archaeological sites from the Roman period. Mosaics tend to be restricted to villas and other domestic architecture or places of worship. The imagery varies from simple, geometric patterns to complex and elaborate panels depicting classical mythological themes.
- Sites on This Tour
- Map of Tour
Besançon Museum of Fine Arts and Archaeology
Opened in 1694, the musée des beaux-arts et d’archéologie de Besançon is the oldest public museum in France, almost a hundred years older than the principal French museums such as the Louvre. Through a series of substantial donations of various local and European archaeological artefacts as well as numerous paintings and drawings by well known French and European artists, the museum displays an impressive collection of Europe’s cultural heritage. > Read more
Museum/Theme Park - Palaeolithic, Roman, Medieval, Egyptian
Cluny Roman Baths
The Thermes de Cluny are the relatively well preserved ruins of what was a massive bath complex constructed by the Romans during the 3rd century AD. Given that the ancient buildings have been in use since the Middle Ages the preservation of these ruins is quite remarkable. A number of architectural elements are intact, including vaults and ribs, as well as small fragments of original wall painting and mosaics. > Read more
Roman - Bath
Fréjus Archaeological Museum
With Fréjus's archaeological heritage, particularly from the Roman period, there are a number of ongoing excavations in the city. The finds from these excavations are displayed in the Municipal archaeology museum. Perhaps the most notable artefact is the double headed bust of Hermès, now the symbol of Fréjus. > Read more
Museum/Theme Park - Roman
Gallo-Roman Museum of Lyon
Founded in 43 BC, the Roman city of Lugdunum was situated on the hillside of an area now known of as Fourvière. A well preserved odeon and theatre still offer spectacular views of Lyon and the Alps. The theatre is one of the oldest in France, while the odeon has a pavement that is made up with a collection of marble slabs from all over the Roman Empire. Above these two extraordinary monuments is the Gallo-Roman museum. > Read more
Roman - Theatre, Odeon
Museum/Theme Park - Roman
Loupian Villa
Loupian Villa was occupied for some 600 years, from the early years of the Roman Empire until the 5th century AD. To begin with it was a modest farmhouse, but during the 1st and 2nd centuries it became a large residence with its own thermal springs. The villa was entirely rebuilt in the 5th century, which is when the spectacular mosaic floors were installed, and it is these that are the villa's attraction today. > Read more
Roman - Villa, Mosaic Floor
Museum of Art and Archaeology of Périgord
The Musée d'art et d'archéologie du Périgord was founded in 1895 by the bringing together of two separate Departmental collections, archaeology and fine arts. The archaeology collection is wide ranging, but is particularly noted for its Palaeolithic collection of artefacts from the area. The museum also has a modest collection of archaeological artefacts from outside of Europe. > Read more
Museum/Theme Park - Far-East Asian, Precolombian America, Palaeolithic, Neolithic, Bronze Age, Iron Age, Greek, Roman, Medieval, Egyptian
National Archaeology Museum
France's National Archaeology Museum is housed in what was once a royal palace - the Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye. In the 1860s Napoleon III had the castle restored to house the nation's archaeology collections. Today, the museum has a vast collection of objects from all over the country representing all periods in prehistory, from the earliest Palaeolithic to the early Medieval. > Read more
Museum/Theme Park - Palaeolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic, Bronze Age, Iron Age, Roman, Medieval
Rolin Musem
Besides a substantial fine arts collection, the Musée Rolin has two other permanent archaeological exhibitions: that of Medieval art and the Roman history of Autun. There are various Roman objects on display, including numerous bronze figurines and a mosaic floor that depicts Neptune, but of particular note is a large collection of carved funerary stelae. > Read more
Museum/Theme Park - Roman, Medieval
Roman Grand
Grand was originally a small Iron Age settlement with a sanctuary dedicated to the Gallic god Grannus. The Romans greatly developed the town and built a more substantial sanctuary and dedicated it to Apollo Grannus. The most substantial Roman remains include those of an amphitheatre and a basilica's mosaic floor. The Roman town was surrounded by ramparts, parts of which are still visible. > Read more
Roman - Amphitheatre, Mosaic Floor, Fortifications
Roman Périgueux
The Roman city of Vesunna, modern day Périgueux, is the best understood Gallo-Roman city in the Aquitaine region, and the presentation of the Roman period in the museum is quite spectacular. The city was founded in about 16 BC and by the end of the 3rd century AD it was a large, walled city, with all the usual features of a Roman city. The city was invaded by Visigoths in 418 AD. > Read more
Roman - Domus, Amphitheatre, Town, Temple
Museum/Theme Park - Roman
Séviac Museum
Le Musée de Montréal-du-Gers is a private museum that was set up to house and study the remains from the nearby Séviac Villa. On various vertical display cases and panels are a number of the more fragile mosaic floors and other artefacts that were removed from the site. Pride of place is given to a spectacular mosaic floor, decorated with a number of trees. > Read more
Museum/Theme Park - Roman
Séviac Roman Villa
Built in the 4th century AD, Séviac Villa was a luxurious mansion with a typical villa layout, including an inner open courtyard (peristyle), heated baths and pool, a hypocaust system for under floor heating, and over 600 m2 of mosaic floors. The mosaics are said to be amongst the most exceptional in the region. > Read more
Roman - Villa, Mosaic Floor
The Departmental Museum of Antiquities
This museum was established in 1831 specifically to receive and display the wonderful objects recovered from the excavations of Gallo-Roman sites in Lillebonne. Since then it has become the departmental museum of antiquities for the Seine Maritime Department of Upper Normandy. Now, with numerous and varied collections, this museum tells the history of Upper Normandy from the Bronze Age to the Renaissance. > Read more
Museum/Theme Park - Bronze Age, Iron Age, Greek, Roman, Medieval, Egyptian
Vaison-La-Romaine
Two areas of the Roman city have been so well excavated that Vaison-La-Romaine is often called the Pompeii of Provence. The centre of the Roman city and its forum remain buried, but those parts that have been uncovered provide a unique view of city life in this area of the Empire, in particular the urban houses. > Read more
Roman - Domus, Bridge, Theatre, Unclassified
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