Musée d'Art et d'Histoire du Judaïsme

Musée d'Art et d'Histoire du Judaïsme

Musée d'Art et d'Histoire du Judaïsme
4.5
Art Museums • History Museums
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11:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Tuesday
11:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Wednesday
11:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Thursday
11:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Friday
11:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Sunday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
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About
The Museum of Jewish Art and History is housed in one of the most beautiful historic monuments in the Marais, the Hôtel de Saint-Aignan, built in the 17th century. The museum traces the evolution of the Jewish world via its artistic and cultural heritage, focussing on the history of the Jews in France since the Middle Ages and evoking the communities of Europe and North Africa. Its collection, one of the finest in the world, comprises religious objects, manuscripts, textiles and unique archive documents concerning the Dreyfus Affair. Special importance is given to the Jewish presence in the arts, featuring the painters of the School of Paris (Chagall, Kikoïne, Soutine...) and contemporary artists such Christian Boltanski and Sophie Calle. The museum runs programmes of workshops for children, families and adults, guided tours, lectures, live performances and films throughout the year.
Suggested duration
1-2 hours
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The area
Address
Neighborhood: 3rd Arr. - Temple
How to get there
  • Rambuteau • 2 min walk
  • Arts et Métiers • 6 min walk
See what other travelers are saying
  • TheStudentExplorer
    Rabat, Morocco19 contributions
    Brilliant museum, amazing exhibitions, extensive Jewish bookshop.
    I am a student and a part of my course is Jewish Studies. I always make an effort to visit Jewish museums and galleries where I go. This is one of the best that I have been to. It provides basic information about Judaism and Jewish culture- you do not have to be Jewish or know anything about Judaism to enjoy this museum. When I went there was a really fascinating exhibition on Jules Adler posing the question as to how relevant his Jewishness was to his art, if it was relevant at all. The Museum also has an amazing bookshop which is mainly in French (small number of English books) that covers extensively almost every part of Jewish history, philosophy, art and music and much more. As with most museums in Paris if you are under 26 years of age you can go in for free!
    Visited February 2020
    Written March 12, 2020
  • Kirk E
    Santa Fe, New Mexico1,053 contributions
    always worth a visit
    MAHJ's permanent collection of Judaica is comprehensive and finely displayed, with texts (some only in French) illuminating life in the Marais from historical times through the travails of WW2 and beyond. But this museum really shines in its temporary exhibits, which over the course of 2022, for instance, ranged from an examination of Marcel Proust's maternal Jewish background, to the extraordinary work of photographer Erwin Blumenthal. Be sure to check out the latest displays while on your visit.
    Visited December 2022
    Written January 30, 2023
  • Tseke
    Hong Kong, China15 contributions
    A Cozy Little Museum
    A nice small museum packed full with history. The site itself is supposedly a building that used to be a center of the Jewish diaspora in Paris, and thus, is a fitting choice for the MAHJ. The audio recordings may be a bit lacking for English speakers, as not every piece has an audio pairing, but it does its job well to explain the greater concepts of each showroom. Other than audio, most articles have french explanations beside it, these are easily google translated. And each room has a general summary of its displays, this always has English. As for speakers of other languages, you are less lucky. Chinese speakers can practically just ignore this place completely. The staff are very friendly though, and the layout for the building is simple.
    Visited July 2022
    Traveled as a couple
    Written August 13, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
Popular mentions

4.5
342 reviews
Excellent
191
Very good
97
Average
37
Poor
10
Terrible
7

Social-Dis
Paris, France106 contributions
Jan 2022
Arnaque!

Registered for an online virtual tour to support a friend who was leading the tour live.
Their system required me to disclose my financial soul to order tickets.
"Ticket"being a virtual tour via Zoom.
Paid for the virtual ticket.
Received email confirmation of membership.
Received email confirmation of payment.
Received email "ticket".
Everything I needed to attend the event. If it were in person. But it's not. It's on zoom.
And they never sent Zoom access.
Written January 16, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

ANGELO V
Milan, Italy2,803 contributions
Jun 2022
When I started my visit, I realized that ancient and modern pieces were alternated, without any evident connection (at least to me). Several ancient pieces were quite remarkable, but then - for no reason I could understand - I was made to visit the temporary show (on Marcel Proust, and I was not interested in this!) and I could not finish to view the permanent exhibition. The staff person that made me deviate could offer no explanation in English on why...
Written June 30, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Linda R
Saranac Lake, NY52 contributions
Apr 2023 • Solo
The museum is pretty amazing. It was hard to tell what to expect ( and it was confusing if there was a pamphlet) but the special exhibition as well as the permanent collection very impressive. Particularly the detailed texts covering each item.

I’m not sure if there was an audio guide available but if so, sorry I did not ask.
Lots of info.

I particularly appreciated the Chagall Ryback and Karp artwork.
Written April 11, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Jo G
4 contributions
Feb 2016 • Solo
In February I decided to take my first solo trip to Paris. As a Judeo-Christian from the United States, I was excited to further explore Jewish culture at the Musee d'Art et d'Histoire du Judaism.

There were armed guards at the door, which was quite unsettling, but due to a recent attacks I understood why the security was needed.

In regards to the museum, let me just say that the exhibits were breathtaking. I would describe the museum as small, but intimate. I started on the first floor reading about the history of Jews in France. I was brought to tears by the stories that I read.

The only discomfort I experienced was being followed around by the staff the entire time I was at the museum. As a brown American, my chocolate complexion caused me stick out. Due to the recent attacks, I quickly because aware that there was a level of discomfort and skepticism surrounding my presence at the museum that day. I was stopped at least five times in the museum and asked to produce my ticket.

As I mentioned, the vigilance of the security and staff was understood due to recent events, but as an American traveler, I would honestly say that being racially profiled was a bit uncomfortable. I left the museum that day with a heavy heart. I have so much honor and respect for the Jewish culture. I just find it very unfortunate that the recent Paris attacks caused me to be viewed as a potential enemy. I will continue to pray for peace in Paris and peace for the Jews.
Written October 30, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Jon F
Alameda, California, United States31 contributions
Jul 2015
We were a couple of the first people to get a new historical tour in English. We aren't Jewish and don't know the culture. The tour gave us a lot of good background that helped explain the significance of what we were seeing.
Written July 8, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

lesleywEvanstonIL
Evanston IL8 contributions
A good way to begin a tour of Le Marais, and the old Jewish quarter. This is very similar to Jewish cultural museums in other major ciites; ritual objects, ketubot, tallit, etc., but it is remarkably well-organized and easy to naviagate. Your entry fee gets you an audio tour in English or French, which enables you to move back and forth between entries and exhibits. There are a lot of historical documents on Jewish life in Spain, England, Italy, Germany and the Netherlands as well as just France, and some heart-breaking accounts of pogroms and expulsions. Good section on the WW II experience too.

Allow plenty of time: I expected to breeze through it and found myself staying over 2 hours. While it seems designed for those with little or no knowlege of Judaism, (lots of explanations of the holidays and lifecycle rituals for example) there's plenty to interest Jewish visitors as well.

One caveat: this is NOT part of the Paris Museum pass package, so you'll need to pay a 6 euro entry fee. Well worth it though.
Written August 9, 2004
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Joe A
New York City, NY5 contributions
Jul 2015 • Couples
A perfect way to discover the history of the Jews in France and Europe in this beautiful mansion in the Marais district. Great mix between history and art (the statue of Captain Dreyfus ans the Chagalls especially)
Should be on top of your to do list.
Written July 17, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Psychiatrist
Las Vegas, NV90 contributions
May 2015 • Friends
This is a wonderful museum in the heart of Le Marais. There is no fee if you have the museum pass. Security is very tight so take this very seriously-just like an airport security screening- no jokes about this. There is a police presence outside. Once inside, you will be fascinated by the extensive collections. You will be awed. If you are Jewish, you should definitely visit and if you are not Jewish, you should still visit this wonderful museum. Afterwards, walk about this neighborhood and enjoy the many restaurants and cafes- go to the rue des rossiers and stop at Freida Kahn's deli and bakery for something to eat. It is on the corner in the middle of this street. Tell her the 2 brothers from Las Vegas sent you.
Written June 28, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Monterey G
Monterey, CA341 contributions
Jun 2015 • Couples
I am not Jewish and find that anything to do with Jewish history is usually about the Holocaust. I do not mean to say that we should not be reminded of the Holocaust and always remember it , but, I was fascinated by other aspects of Jewish history in Europe. There are exhibits from all over Europe and from all periods of history. Art, sculpture, clothing, writings, etc., all of which was beautiful and moving to me. This museum is located in the Marais area of Paris in a gorgeous old mansion. Definitely a must see, in my opinion.
Written June 23, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

A K
Lawrence, New York, United States118 contributions
Jun 2015 • Family
wow. this is a great museum. well set up, informative, interesting special exhibits (currently, the history of magic and mysticism in judaism) beautiful, and air conditioned
Written July 3, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Musée d'Art et d'Histoire du Judaïsme (Paris) - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go

Frequently Asked Questions about Musée d'Art et d'Histoire du Judaïsme

Musée d'Art et d'Histoire du Judaïsme is open:
  • Tue - Fri 11:00 AM - 6:00 PM
  • Sat - Sun 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
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