The museum

 

Created by the Vienne Textile Heritage Association, the Drapery Museum first opened in 1995. Since 199 it has become a municipal museum and is curated under the authority of the town of Vienne. It has three large exhibition areas and two event rooms.

The museum tour is organised according to two themes which highlight the socio-economic and technical aspects of the textile industry in Vienne: the various aspects of the life of workers, and the fabric manufacturing cycle. Today, the museum reminds us that the drapery industry provided the livelihood for Vienne's population for more than two and a half centuries. With reconstructed scenes, archive documents, photographs and videos, the museum recounts the story of the men who marked the Vienne textile industry. The waters of the Gère (a tributary of the Rhône) were an asset to the various activities of craftsmen, and have been used since ancient times, and even more so in the Middle Ages. In the 18th century, they set the scene for steelworks, metalworking facilities, and textile plants.

In that period, activity in Vienne was oriented towards woollen products, with the creation of the Charvet royal works.

The 16th century was marked by the modernisation of machines, the development of social work, and the onset of strikes. The 1914-1918 war saw Vienne providing one quarter of French cloth production for the army.

During the Second World War, manufacturers were short of raw materials, and certain companies were requisitioned. After Liberation, it was hard to re-start because of a shortage of labour, changing fashions, foreign competition, and the closure of many establishments.

With about thirty machines in its collection, the museum is able to illustrate the complete manufacturing cycle of woollen cloth. These machines are a real technical treasure; the oldest ones date from the late 19th century, and are incorporated in an interactive journey where the visitor discovers the features of Vienne's drapery industry and the three phases of production: spinning (the creation of threads), weaving (the creation of fabric), and finishing.

An animated display board, reconstructed scenes, diagrams, videos, sound effects and operating machines all help to understand how fabric was manufactured, appreciate the working conditions of textile workers, and witness the skills of yesteryear. A viennois collection of fabric samples spanning a century enhances the tour.