Lyon’s Fine Arts Museum opened its doors in 1803 in a former Benedictine abbey on Place des Terreaux. Also known as Palais Saint-Pierre, the building itself is remarkable, especially its garden in the former cloister, a charming oasis of tranquility in the city center.
Today it is the most visited museum in Lyon, and doubtlessly the most complete – with a wealth of collections and paintings dating from the Renaissance to the 20th century, and representing the great French, Flemish and Italian painters. The museum also exhibits hundreds of sculptures from all periods, as well as many pieces from Egyptian, Greek and Roman antiquity.
Here you can also admire Japanese prints, ceramics from Iran and the Far East, and works from the Art Nouveau, Art Deco and modern periods.