Maritime, Fluvial and Harbour Museum of Rouen

Maritime, Fluvial and Harbour Museum of Rouen
Musée maritime fluvial et portuaire de Rouen
Established	1999
Location	Hangar portuaire n°13, Quai Émile Duchemin, 76000 Rouen, France
Visitor figures	about 10,000 per year
Public transit access	Nearest bus stop: Mont-Riboudet (T1, T2, T3, 16)
Website	www.musee-maritime-rouen.asso.fr

The musée maritime fluvial et portuaire de Rouen is a museum dedicated to the history of the port of Rouen, which is one the greatest port of France. The museum opened in 1999, during the Armada.

The museum

The main themes are:

• the history of the port, with photos, and an exhibition space about the destruction caused by World War II
• the infrastructures of the port and the works on the Seine to allow it to be navigable for the greatest ships
• the greatest sail ships of Rouen, with an exhibition room about the ships which were to New Caledonia to load nickel
• the merchant navy, with a lot of models of cargo ships, a lot of them docked often in front of or in the vicinity of the hangar where the museum is located
• river navigation
• ship building
• whale hunting, with a whale skeleton (see below)
• the history of submarines, with a reproduction of the interior of the Nautilus designed by Robert Fulton.

It is possible to see trawler and barge motors, a mist bell which was formerly located at the estuary of the Risle, a scuba set and the reproduction of the radio cabin of a ship from the 1960s.

A whale skeleton (lent by the museum d'histoire naturelle de Rouen) is exhibited in the centre of the museum. It is a fin whale which was 7 years old when it died by grounding.

There is also a 38 meter long barge, named Pompon Rouge, which can be visited, its hold has been transformed into an exhibition room about the river navigation, with a lock model.

Besides this, there are temporary exhibitions about miscellaneous issues, such as the transporter bridge of Rouen or the Vikings.

Pictures

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  General sight of the museum

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  The barge Pompon Rouge, transformed into an exhibition space

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  The hold of the barge, with the permanent exhibition about the river navigation

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  Sulzer Motor of 400 cv and 28 tons which equipped a trawler (1937)

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  Model of the Marie-Louise Schiaffino, a ship which docked often in front of the former hangar 13

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  Model of the Petraia, a ship which docked often at the coal dock, on the opposite side of the Seine

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  Mist bell, which was formerly located at the estuary of the Risle

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  Model of the transporter bridge of Rouen

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  Whale skeleton

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  Reproduction of the radio cabin of a ship from the 60's

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  Model of the dreadnought Richelieu

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  Scuba set

Hangar 13, where the museum is located.

The site

The museum is located in a former hangar of the port, not far from the new Gustave Flaubert bridge. This hangar was built in 1926, and was named hangar M until 1966 and the creation of the Port autonome de Rouen.

It was let at the disposal of the Schiaffino Company, until the 1970s, which made lines with North Africa. At first, it was used to store wine until the building of a wine hangar. Then, it was used more to store fruits.

During the 1970s, the hangar is used by many companies until 1984, where it was desaffected because it was not fitted any more for the harbour.

See also

• Maritime museum

External links

• Musée maritime fluvial et portuaire de Rouen Official site.