L'Hôtel d'Agar in all intimacy - News & Discoveries...

"The Hôtel d'Agar is a building that my parents bought in 1993, located between the Tourist Office and the Cathedral of Cavaillon. As soon as we had this house, we quickly started to mount exhibitions. There was already great potential with a whole series of 17th century fireplaces and a painted Renaissance ceiling that testifies to the passage of François I through Cavaillon... Then with all the archaeological excavations, we finally used our house as a tool to talk about the history of the town and the region."

Knowing how to magnify curiosities, from prehistory to the present day, and how to guide our own!

To push open the doors of the Hôtel d'Agar is to plunge into a veritable cabinet of curiosities. The collections range from prehistory to the present day and offer visitors a wide variety of exhibitions.

"In 2000, the house was already open but only for a weekend at Christmas to present a Provencal cot and a Neapolitan cot from the 18th century. We told the story of the cot, the origins, the traditions... Since 2011, the exhibitions are organised over two three-month periods each year. The difficulty is that we do not have a single speciality, our collection is very varied and we have to find the right balance in what we present. We try to do a different scenography for each exhibition. It's an opportunity to talk about a part of the collection that couldn't be covered before (engraving, painting, ceramics...).

The Marseilles plague of 1720: when history and current events meet...

"In 2020 we presented an exhibition on the history of the Plague of Marseille in 1720. We collected thousands of documents from the children of a former curator in Avignon. Correspondence between individuals, royal decrees, administrative documents... A whole heap of archives that inform us about the political, administrative and religious functioning and the state of mind of the people during the epidemic. We have so many archives that for the summer of 2021, we are going to resume the exhibition on the plague by telling the story of the end of the epidemic. How did it end? How did people continue to live after this health disaster? An interesting parallel with our current situation.

Why a cabinet of curiosities in Cavaillon and not a museum?

These visits are also an opportunity to discuss, to exchange ideas... Guilhem and his family are private individuals who open their house to the public, the visits are organised by group and last between 1h30 and 1h45. After the visit, the historical garden of the house is also open to enjoy a last time of exchange...

"We took the model of the cabinet of curiosities. What you need to know is that in the 17th century when people stopped in a town there was often a large collection visible. Travellers, artists... could meet the collector and ask questions about local history, art, show books and paintings... That's what's most interesting in the end, the encounters and exchanges with our visitors.

So many wonders about the history of Cavaillon and the Luberon to discover...

"During the last works we restored the reception hall which had not been shown for more than 12 years. This year we are restoring the ground floor, the concrete is being removed for an excavation campaign. This week we discovered a medieval trap door that allowed medieval people to access a well that dates back to Roman antiquity! In another room there was a wooden floor from the 1950s. Underneath we found a mosaic dating from the late 18th century. It is thought that this was commissioned by the Vicomte de Sade, cousin of the Marquis de Sade, who owned the house in the 17th and 18th centuries. After only a few weeks of work we are really happy!

The development projects of this space, a witness to the history of the Luberon

The fitting out of the ground floor is an opportunity to renew the experience at the Hôtel d'Agar and to find some new features. 

"Next year there will be two additional rooms upstairs and three rooms on the ground floor overlooking the garden. The latter will be open to visitors, who will be able to explore them independently, have access to the garden and a tea room. This is a request that has often been made by our visitors. We will try to propose a maximum of products from local craftsmen to highlight the production of Cavaillon and its surroundings. A friendly and pleasant place is what we want.

What if you can't come to Cavaillon right away?

In the meantime, the virtual visit of the Hôtel d'Agar is still available on its website. You will also find future information on opening hours and upcoming exhibitions. To follow the news, the progress of the work and to be informed of the latest discoveries, subscribe to the Instagram account!