Once home to the dukes of Lorraine, the regal Renaissance Palais Ducal now shelters the Musée Lorrain. The rich fine arts and history collection spotlights medieval statuary, engravings and lustrous faience (glazed pottery). The regional art and folklore collection occupies a 15th-century former Franciscan monastery. Inside, the Gothic Église des Cordeliers and the 17th-century Chapelle Ducale, modelled on the Medici Chapel in Florence, served as the burial place of the dukes of Lorraine.

© Jean-Marc Pierard/Getty Images/iStock
Musée Lorrain
Nancy
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
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Nearby Nancy attractions
1. Vieille Ville
0.16 MILES
A saunter through the charming old town takes in the silver-turreted, 14th-century Porte de la Craffe, Nancy’s oldest city gate, and place St-Epvre,…
2. Place de la Carrière
0.17 MILES
Adjoining place Stanislas – on the other side of Nancy’s own Arc de Triomphe, built in the mid-1750s to honour Louis XV – is this quiet square. Once a…
3. Parc de la Pépinière
0.29 MILES
On a hot summer’s day, escape the crowds in this formal garden, with ornamental fountains, a rose garden and a Rodin sculpture of Baroque landscape…
4. Musée des Beaux-Arts
0.3 MILES
Lodged in a regal 18th-century edifice, Nancy's standout gallery occupies art lovers for hours. A wrought-iron staircase curls gracefully up to the 2nd…
5. Place Stanislas
0.32 MILES
Nancy’s crowning glory is this grand neoclassical square and Unesco World Heritage Site. Designed by Emmanuel Héré in the 1750s, it was named after the…
6. Hôtel de Ville
0.36 MILES
Forming part of the place Stanislas ensemble, the grand 18th-century Hôtel de Ville spreads across the entire southern flank of the square.
7. Place de l’Alliance
0.4 MILES
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8. Chambre de Commerce
0.42 MILES
Built in 1908, the art nouveau Chambre de Commerce features wrought iron by Louis Majorelle.