Mines Paris – PSL opens the doors of its historic building, the Hôtel de Vendôme, on Saturday, September 19, 2026. This visit offers the public the opportunity to discover an exceptional heritage, composed of its library, its museum of mineralogy, its garden, but also to better understand the great missions that animate the School today.
This 2026 edition offers a free and open course, allowing to explore a place where more than two centuries of history are combined with scientific research resolutely turned towards the future. One of the oldest engineering schools in France, Mines Paris – PSL fosters dialogue between heritage, education, innovation, and research, pursuing the same ambition: to put science at the service of society’s major challenges.
Attention PMR: due to the historical configuration of the building, the tour route is unfortunately not accessible to people with reduced mobility.
A heritage at the service of today’s challenges
Throughout the visit, discover how the history of the School is fully integrated into contemporary issues. Ecological transition, artificial intelligence, digital transformation, mineral resources, health or industrial sovereignty: the research conducted at Mines Paris – PSL answers the major scientific, technological and societal questions of our time.
Mediation panels and videos will punctuate the course to highlight this research work and show how an establishment founded in the 18th century continues to invent tomorrow’s solutions, in close partnership with industrial and institutional actors.
The Hôtel de Vendôme
Since 1815, Mines Paris – PSL has been housed in the Hôtel de Vendôme, a private mansion built at the beginning of the 18th century and gradually extended during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Founded in 1783 by Louis XVI on the advice of the chemist and mineralogist Balthazar Sage, the school responded to the strategic needs of the French mining industry.
Today, true to this tradition of scientific excellence at the service of society, Mines Paris – PSL trains engineers, researchers and entrepreneurs who will help meet the major challenges of the twenty-first century. Its historic building bears witness to this evolution and tells more than two centuries of scientific history.
The library
With its monumental glass roof and magnificent woodwork, the library is one of the most remarkable spaces of the School. It preserves an important documentary heritage composed of ancient works and rare collections, while relying today on vast digital resources.
A true crossroads of knowledge produced by training and research, it participates in the dissemination, conservation and enhancement of scientific knowledge developed within Mines Paris – PSL.
The Museum of Mineralogy
Created more than two centuries ago, the Museum of Mineralogy houses one of the most important mineralogical collections in the world. It brings together nearly 100,000 samples, including about 4,000 presentations: minerals, rocks, meteorites, precious stones and several gems from the Crown Jewels of France.
Beyond the rich heritage of its collections, the museum sheds light on fully contemporary issues, particularly those related to critical metals, rare earths, and the sustainable management of mineral resources essential for energy and digital transitions.
The school garden
Exceptionally open to the public on the occasion of the European Heritage Days, the Jardin de l'Ecole offers a moment of calm in the heart of the 6th arrondissement of Paris. From this usually inaccessible space, visitors will be able to admire the rear façade of the Hôtel de Vendôme, its terrace, as well as privileged views of the Luxembourg garden and the Senate greenhouses.
MINES MAGIC 3D – Stereoscopic and lenticular photography from 1850 to the present
Discover in preview the exhibition MINES MAGIC 3D: observe three-dimensional images from the heritage and research of the School. Admire some works from the exhibition illustrating the history of photography to the most recent digital models. This exhibition, labeled by the Bicentenary of Photography, is organized by the Institute of Digital Transformations (ITN) of Mines Paris – PSL, in collaboration with the library, as part of the research program ATIPICC (Future of Immersive Technologies for Cultural and Creative Industries) at PSL University.
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