Guide to Museums in:


Monaco

MONACO

MONACO MUSEUMS

The Oceanographic Museum is a museum of marine sciences in Monaco-Ville, Monaco. The museum is home to exhibitions and collections of various species of sea fauna (starfish, seahorses, turtles, jellyfish, crabs, lobsters, rays, sharks, sea urchins, sea cucumbers, eels, cuttlefish etc.) both stuffed and in skeletal form. The museum's holdings also include a great variety of sea related objects, including model ships, sea animal skeletons, tools, weapons, etc. An aquarium located in the basement of the museum showcases a wide array of flora and fauna. Four thousand species of fish and over 200 families of invertebrates can be seen. The aquarium also features a presentation of Mediterranean and tropical marine ecosystems. The Museum celebrated its 100th birthday in March 2010, after extensive renovations.

For more information and enquiries please contact Musée océanographique de Monaco, Avenue Saint-Martin, MC 98000 Monaco, Tel : + 377 93 15 36 00, E-mail: musee@oceano.mc

The Oceanographic Museum as seen from the cliffside rocks
Photograph © Dungodung

The Prince's Palace of Monaco is the official residence of the Prince of Monaco. Built in 1191 as a Genoese fortress, during its long and often dramatic history it has been bombarded and besieged by many foreign powers.The Prince's Palace of Monaco is the official residence of the Prince of Monaco. Built in 1191 as a Genoese fortress, during its long and often dramatic history it has been bombarded and besieged by many foreign powers. The state rooms are open to the public during the summer, and since 1960, the palace's courtyard has been the setting for open air concerts given by Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra. For important Monégasque events—such as Grimaldi weddings and births—the palace courtyard is opened and the assembled citizens of Monaco are addressed by the prince from the Gallery of Hercules overlooking the courtyard. The courtyard is also used to host the annual children's Christmas party. Through such events, the palace continues to play a central role in the lives of the prince and his subjects, as it has done for over 700 years.

For more information and enquiries please contact Prince’s Palace of Monaco, B.P. 518, MC 98015 Monaco Cedex, Phone: +377 93 25 18 31, E-mail: dtc@gouv.mc

Prince's Palace of Monaco
Photograph taken by Berthold Werner

The Napoleon Museum in Monte Carlo, Monaco is a museum of artefacts which once belonged to the French Emperor Napoleon I. The museum which is attached to the Prince of Monaco's palace contains a collection assembled by Prince Louis II the grandfather of the present Prince of Monaco. The collection contains numerous possessions of the Emperor including letters and documents pertaining to his reign and conquest of Europe and relics from his exile and imprisonment on Saint Helena. Also included in the collection is clothing which belonged to Napoleon's son the King of Rome. On a mezzanine floor in the museum are displayed items of historical importance relating to the principality of Monaco, including the Charter of Independence of Monaco given royal assent by King Louis XII of France.

For more information and enquiries please contact Prince’s Palace of Monaco, B.P. 518, MC 98015 Monaco Cedex, Phone: +377 93 25 18 31, E-mail: dtc@gouv.mc

The Musée National de Monaco is a doll museum in the principality of Monaco. The museum's collection of dolls and automatons were made in Paris in the second half of the 19th century. The dolls are presented in show cases with suitably scaled period furniture, chinaware and other objects. Admission is 6 euros per adult and 4 euros per child.

For more information and enquiries please contact Nouveau Musée National de Monaco, 8 rue Honoré Labande, 98000 Monaco, Monaco, Tel: + 377 98 98 19 62, E-mail: contact@nmnm.mc

The Jardin Exotique de Monaco is a botanical garden located on a cliffside in Monaco. It was opened in 1933, and has a rich collection of over a thousand species of exotic plants, especially cactuses. At the foot of the cliff, ranging in altitude between 98 and 40 metres, there is a large natural underground cave with caverns displaying many stalagmites and stalactites, draperies and columns. It was opened to the public in 1950, but can only be visited with specialized guides. There is a museum of Prehistoric Anthropology within the Exotic Garden displaying many prehistoric remains. The Exotic Garden of Monaco is open every day of the year between 9am and except 19 November (National Holiday) and 25 December.

For more information and enquiries please contact Jardin Exotique de Monaco 62, boulevard du Jardin Exotique, B.P. 105 - MC 98002 MONACO Cedex, Tel: +377 93 15 29 80, E-mail: jardin-exotique@mairie.mc

Cactuses at the Jardin Exotique de Monaco
Photograph © Tim Pope