Tarn. Albi will form a partnership with New Caledonia, find out why

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During the municipal council meeting ofbleach (Tarn), on Monday December 16, 2024, it will be proposed to approve the terms of a partnership between the City and a museum… in New Caledonia!

This is the maritime museum of this French territory in the South Pacific. An associative museum, founded in Nouméa thirty years ago thanks to the commitment of the Salomon and Fortunes de Mer Calédoniennes associations, and which plays a key role in the preservation and promotion of Caledonian maritime heritage. This museum offers exhibitions dedicated to maritime history, great explorations in the Pacific and underwater archaeological discoveries.

on “Lapérouse Collection” is made up of objects discovered during excavations carried out on the wrecks of the expedition shipwrecked in 1788 at Vanikoro (Solomon Islands). The relationship with the Tarn? The famous explorer was born in Albi.

Waiting for the future museum

Some of these historical treasures have already been entrusted to the Lapérouse municipal museum
of Albi within the framework of deposit agreements. The Maritime Museum of New Caledonia, as main depository of these goods which remain the property of the State, preserves the majority of the collection, while the City of Albi, through the current museum, plays the role of secondary depository, presenting for a long time a selection of these objects emblematic to visitors.

But today the New Caledonia Museum and the City of Albi want to go further. The collaboration that the two partners are planning will make it possible to develop joint projects and share knowledge and expertise.

With the future Lapérouse museum in Albi in sight. The future cultural establishment “Escale Lapérouse, worlds to explore” aims to retrace the history of the Lapérouse expedition while addressing broader themes. It will include a permanent exhibition, educational and temporary exhibition spaces, as well as an inresearch institute intended to encourage innovative initiatives in the spirit of discovery and daring which characterized Lapérouse.

It is being built in place of the old treasury, opposite the Grand Théâtre and should be open to the public in 2027. A huge project which will “mark the decade”, assures the town hall of Albi.

Australia on the horizon

“With this commitment, Albi and the Maritime Museum of New Caledonia intend to promote sustainable cultural and scientific exchanges, while increasing their mutual influence at the international level” wishes the mayor, Stéphanie Guiraud-Chaumeil.

And moreover, beyond New Caledonia, this partnership also opens up new prospects for cooperation with Australia, and more particularly with the Town of Randwickin the greater Sydney area (approximately 134,000 inhabitants), twinned with Albi since 1988.

Botany Baythe last known stopover of the Lapérouse expedition, constitutes a strong symbolic link between the two territories.

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