The Marseille History Museum is the local historical and archaeological museum opened in 1983. It became soon one of the most significant museums for urban history in France, dedicated to exhibiting the major archaeological finds discovered after the site was excavated in 1967; at the same time the property was redeveloped commercially and the Centre Bourse shopping arcade constructed. The museum building is entered from within the centre, and opens out onto the 'Jardin des Vestiges', an outdoor garden containing the stabilised archaeological remains; it includes classical ramparts, port buildings, and a necropolis.
The construction of the Center Bourse was undertaken in 1967 on land in the district behind the Bourse, the old buildings of which had been destroyed from 1912 to 1937 and which had been left as they were. During the earthworks for the construction of the shopping center, many remains of Greek, Roman and medieval ages were discovered. Their importance was then a surprise although the existence of the famous wall of Crinas could suggest the discovery of other remains. Gérin Ricard specifies in the book Promenades archeologique published in 1925 that the Greek origin of this wall had been supported by members of the Archaeological Commission as early as 1916.
The creation of a Marseilles history museum therefore seems essential. The archaeologist and anthropologist Alain Nicolas participates in its foundation. It was opened in 1983. Some of the discoveries are kept on site, the ancient port has been converted into the Jardin des Vestiges. The museum then includes a temporary exhibition hall for events on various themes relating to the history of Marseille and a permanent exhibition hall which highlights the various remains discovered.
Installed in the Center Bourse, near the Old Port, the Marseille History Museum houses the site of the Jardin des Vestiges, a permanent exhibition of 3,500 m2, a temporary exhibition space, a documentation center and an auditorium, making it the most important urban history museum in France. The museum presently contains permanent displays exhibiting the history of Marseille up to the 18th century. Highlights include:
some of the finds from the site itself, including, most famously, the hull of a ship of the 2nd century (claimed to be the best preserved vessel of this period in the world);the prehistory of the region round the later city, the Ligures and the Phocaeans, and the development through the Ancient Greek and Roman periods of the port of Massilia;early Christianity (4th-6th centuries);medieval potters' workshops and the first French manufacture of faience (13th century);the redevelopment of the city under Louis XIV and the construction of the forts of Saint-Jean and Saint-Nicolas;the architecture and building works of the architect, sculptor and painter Pierre Puget;the Great Plague of 1720.
Further building works are planned which, when completed, will assure permanent exhibitions of Marseille's history for the 19th and 20th centuries.
References:The church of the former Franciscan monastery was built probably between 1515 and 1520. It is located in the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Old Rauma. The church stands by the small stream of Raumanjoki (Rauma river).
The exact age of the Church of the Holy Cross is unknown, but it was built to serve as the monastery church of the Rauma Franciscan Friary. The monastery had been established in the early 15th century and a wooden church was built on this location around the year 1420.
The Church of the Holy Cross served the monastery until 1538, when it was abandoned for a hundred years as the Franciscan friary was disbanded in the Swedish Reformation. The church was re-established as a Lutheran church in 1640, when the nearby Church of the Holy Trinity was destroyed by fire.
The choir of the two-aisle grey granite church features medieval murals and frescoes. The white steeple of the church was built in 1816 and has served as a landmark for seafarers.