The thematic museums

The European house of photography organizes thematic or monographic exhibitions since 1985. The exhibition rooms have been installed in an old private mansion from the beginning of the18th century, the hôtel Hénault de Cantobre, of which remains in particular a beautiful balcony and stairs with a wrought iron banister.

The museum presents accessories of " amusing physics " from the 17th and 18th centuries, called " conjuring " only since 1815. Real magic shows included in the entry price can be seen there but also instruments allowing to have objects disappear and to deform reality : the box of the sawed woman, small objects in wood coming from boxes of " amusing physics " offered to children of the 19th century, the " secret boxes " from where jewels disappear, automations, some " dimenderies ", malleable objects in brass made in Dinand in Belgium.

The dolls have replaced in 1995 the former museum of mechanic instruments. The new museum shows a collection of dolls and of French porcelain " babies " dating from 1860 to 1960, gathered by two collectors, Guido and his son Samy Odin. Presented in a decor recalling the times of their creation, the dolls have evouated too : the " Parisians " from 1860-1870 have an adult face and copy the fashion. It is only after 1880 that the first dolls with a child face, then a baby face appear. The museum organizes training periods of creation and restoration of porcelain dolls.

The museum is set in an old restored private mansion. The hotel was bought and restored by the Bricard Company, specialized in the ornamental ironwork. The museum shows keys in bronze and in Gallo-Roman iron, gothic knockers from the Middle Ages, locks and keys from the 16th to the 19th centuries and keys from the 16th to the 19th century. A lordsmith workshop is reconstituted.