The Museum of Relief Maps
Why these models exist
A plan on paper does not convey relief, and relief decides a siege. The king's engineers, Vauban foremost among them, therefore had large-scale models built of the kingdom's fortified towns: every bastion, every ditch, every field outside the walls is there. Counters were placed on them, trenches argued over. It was a state secret, and it stayed one for a long time.
What it feels like up there
The gloom is deliberate: it protects the models and it concentrates the eye. You find yourself leaning over an entire 17th-century town, its roofs, its trees, its star-shaped ramparts, in a silence the rest of the museum does not have. It is the space my visitors write to me about months later.
One practical caveat: access is by stairs and this is the most constrained part of the site for anyone with limited mobility. See the accessibility page.
Even if you are short of time, go up for ten minutes. Two models are enough to understand what they are, and that is worth more than another half hour in a gallery of uniforms.
Book your entry
The ticket below opens the Dôme, the tomb and the four museums, for the whole day.
Frequently asked questions
Are the relief maps included in the ticket?
Yes, the Les Invalides ticket opens them like the other spaces.
How long do you need?
Twenty to forty minutes, and ten is enough to understand them.
Is it wheelchair accessible?
It is the most constrained part of the site: ask at the desk, see this page.